


What Redeeming Qualities

by knowmeknot



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Dubious Consent, Implied/Referenced Incest, M/M, POV Papyrus, POV Sans (one chapter), Proto-Undertale, Suicidal Ideation, Unhealthy Relationships, Verbal Abuse, bad brother au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-23
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-09-11 14:16:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 33,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8984929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/knowmeknot/pseuds/knowmeknot
Summary: Papyrus is killed by the human in a genocide run. When the world resets, he finds himself in a strange version of the Underground. Snowdin is a sprawling town instead of a simple one, there’s an ice cave near Snowdin and all the residents look just a bit different from how he remembered. He also meets himself—his fedora-wearing, kind of creepy, “My Little Boney” (WHAT EVEN IS THAT?!) loving self, who treats his brother like trash. Well the Great Papyrus is not going to stand for that! He decides to help his not!brother and make other him become a better monster. Because surely this other him had to have some redeeming qualities.  Inspired by Tobyfox’s comments from the Undertale artbook (proto-Undertale) and the Bad Brother AU





	1. Other Me is Not Very Nice

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Askellie (NadaNine)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NadaNine/gifts).



> This fic is dedicated to Askellie after getting inspiration from this post (Warning, NSFW!):  
> https://askellie.tumblr.com/post/154460770526/eli-sin-g-boi-he-bad-oh-damn-a-now-i-kind  
> Though it may or may not go as far as depicted above. I kinda want this to stay relatively SFW but we’ll see.
> 
> Anyway, I’ll be posting (badly taken) photos the artbook that I use as references to certain parts of this fic on my tumblr (knowmeknot101.tumblr.com). In fact, some of them will be up alongside this. 
> 
> And rest assured, my goal is to finish this by end of January or early February the latest. All the chapters have already been outlined, so all I need to do is write it.

Papyrus stood his ground despite the apprehension coursing through him as the human approached. They took shambling steps towards him, a plastic knife in their dust-covered hands. It did not go unnoticed by Papyrus, and though the human had been a freaking weirdo for not liking puzzles (how preposterous! Everyone loved puzzles!), he was willing to give the human a chance to change—to become a better person. After all, anyone can become a better person if they try.

“HUMAN! I THINK YOU ARE IN NEED OF GUIDANCE!” Papyrus announced with determination. “SOMEONE NEEDS TO KEEP YOU ON THE STRAIGHT AND NARROW! BUT WORRY NOT! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL GLADLY BE YOUR FRIEND AND TUTOR! I WILL TURN YOUR LIFE RIGHT AROUND!!”

The human continued their slow, shuffling footsteps, expression completely unchanged from their emotionless blank stare. Fear slowly crept into his soul but he could not falter now! 

“I SEE YOU ARE APPROACHING. ARE YOU OFFERING A HUG OF ACCEPTANCE?” Papyrus opened his lanky arms for an embrace. “WOWIE!! MY LESSONS ARE ALREADY WORKING! I, PAPYRUS, WELCOME YOU WITH OPEN ARMS!”

The human stood inches from him, their height not even reaching his shoulders. They raised the arm carrying the knife and, with a swift stroke, swung it across his neck. He felt a sharp pain.

Was this the end? He never even got a chance to say goodbye to Sans!

His body began to disintegrate into dust. He hoped his dying words will finally shine through to the human.

“W-WELL, THAT’S NOT WHAT I EXPECTED… BUT… ST… STILL! I BELIEVE IN YOU! YOU CAN DO A LITTLE BETTER! EVEN IF YOU DON’T THINK SO! I… I PROMISE…” 

Everything went black. Papyrus stood in the darkness. He couldn’t see nor feeling anything. He took a step forward but the darkness persisted. He was basically a blind skeleton wandering in some unknown place. 

He called out to Sans, to Undyne, to anyone. But nobody came.

He didn’t know how long he’d been walking but his bones eventually grew weary. He sat down, pulled his legs close to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. He didn’t like this place at all. It was so desolately lonely. How had he even ended up in this place? He felt a phantom pain across his neck from the human’s last attack. Was he dead? Was this the monster afterlife? 

He yearned for his brother, who always seemed to know what to say to make him feel better, or Undyne, his best friend. Maybe if he waited, someone would eventually come. So he waited, and waited… and waited. With a desperate cry, he called out for his brother. As soon as he had, some unknown force, accompanied by undecipherable static, whipped across his face. He shut his sockets in response.

Papyrus opened his sockets and found himself sitting on a snow-covered ground. He scrambled up and peered around, noting that he was right before the last XOXO sliding ice puzzle. Since he was right there, he could calibrate the puzzle. It would save him some time later to use for training. 

As the tall skeleton made his way to the back of the puzzle, he noticed the surroundings were slightly different from how he remembered. The southern path, instead of leading to his and his brother’s snow figures, led to a wide, dark entrance into a cave. He didn’t remember this ever existing. 

How new and exciting!

Papyrus took a step into the cavern. The floor was completely covered in ice, casting a bluish glow throughout the area. He took a step forward, appreciating that his boots had enough traction to prevent him from slipping. Drawings of monsters and symbols littered along the walls. Darkness seeped into the cave the farther ahead he traveled.

He had just gone past the illustrations when he heard a loud, shrill humming coming from the mouth of the cave. The tall skeleton took a final glance inside before jogging back in the direction he came, the humming becoming louder as he stepped outside. 

Papyrus found himself staring at… himself? At least, the skeleton looked awfully like him. There were a few differences; for one, this skeleton wore a black fedora on his head. Unlike his blank sockets, he had thin, horizontal eye lights in his which made him look slightly intimidating. His battle armor had large spike-lined shoulder pads, a fancy belt and knee-high red boots. Papyrus had to admit that it looked very cool, but he still preferred his own. He and his brother had worked hard to make it.

“Who are you?” the other him asked, eye lights narrowing in suspicion.

“I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! IT’S NICE TO MEET YOU!” 

“Ah, your name is also Papyrus? Well, of course! Who wouldn’t want to be named after me, the Prodigious Papyrus!” the monster tipped his fedora as an introduction. 

Wowie, Papyrus had never met another him before! It was kind of weird but also very exciting.

In the back part of his mind, Papyrus wondered where these differences came from, and how he was even able to meet another him.

“Though I must say, it’ll get confusing with both of us called Papyrus. Do you have another name you go by? Obviously I should stay as Papyrus as that is my name to begin with.”

Papyrus felt a bit saddened to not even have a say in the matter. But he figured other him just liked the name very much. 

“UM… HOW ABOUT PAP? MY BROTHER CALLS ME THAT SOMETIMES AS A NICKNAME.”

The other Papyrus looked contemplating before giving a nod, “That should work. As long as everyone still knows me as Papyrus, that’s fine.” 

Papyrus knew he sometimes said things to inflate his own ego, but he never came off this arrogant had he? 

The other him began walking in the direction of Snowdin. Papyrus followed after him.

“You must be new around here. I’ve never seen you before.” 

What? How could he be new if he’d been living in Snowdin since a babybones. Then again, his memory of his childhood was shaky at best. He didn’t even know if he had parents; he only ever remembered living with Sans.

“I’VE ALWAYS LIVED IN SNOWDIN.”

“Really? Like I said, never see you before. But don’t worry, the Prodigious Papyrus will give you a brief tour of Snowdin, unlike the other monsters of Snowdin who simply waste away at home or work a miserable job.”

“WHAT DO YOU DO? I’M CURRENTLY TRAINING TO BECOME PART OF THE ROYAL GUARD BUT WORK AS A SENTRY!”

The other Papyrus suddenly stopped. Papyrus almost crashed into him. Mocking laughter came out of the fedora-wearing skeleton’s mouth.

“That’s depressing. I was expecting a bit more from you.”

“AH, DO NOT FEEL BAD! I’M SURE YOUR EXPECTATIONS OF ME WERE SIMPLY TOO HIGH TO REACH!” 

Papyrus received an unimpressed look from his double.

“That wasn’t a compliment. It’s sad that someone with my great name is so below my standards. After all, I am already a Royal Guard!”

Papyrus gasped in shock, “WOWIE!! WILL YOU HELP TRAIN ME TO BECOME PART OF THE ROYAL GUARD?!”

His enthusiasm must have been blinding as the other him proudly puffed out his chest and agreed with barely any hesitation. 

“But I expect the best from you! Absolutely no laziness!”

“OF COURSE! I AM NOT LAZY LIKE MY BROTHER!” Papyrus assured. 

The two skeletons continued their way into Snowdin. 

“So you have a lazy and worthless brother as well?” other Papyrus asked, his voice dripping with disdain. “It’s such an annoyance, isn’t it?” 

Papyrus frowned. He’d always nagged Sans about his laziness but it was only as a way of motivation. His brother never showed any offense to it. Other him’s comment, however, sounded mean-spirited. 

“MY BROTHER IS NOT WORTHLESS AND I’M SURE YOURS IS NOT EITHER!”

The other Papyrus scoffed and muttered, “Yeah, whatever. Talking about this is making me upset. Let’s just get going.”

The two skeletons continued their way into Snowdin. The wooden bridge into town appeared a lot more dangerous. Spike traps that sparked with electricity and cannons lined along the sides of the bridge. There was barely enough space for the two of them to walk across.

The layout and entire atmosphere of the town was also different. The tall gyftmas tree still stood at the center of town; however, there were numerous houses lined along Papyrus’s right side. No presents were under the tree. The Inn appeared first instead of the Shop. All sorts of monsters wandered throughout the snowy streets, chattering and greeting enthusiastically to one another. 

Papyrus found it odd that none of the residents greeted him and the other Papyrus, though he tried to introduce himself when he past a monster he recognize. In fact, it almost seemed as if most residents were trying to actively avoid the two of them. The rejection stung.

By this time, he’d realized that this wasn’t the Snowdin he’d lived in for most of his life. Where in the world was this place? Maybe this world’s Sans would be able to clear up any questions he had. His brother had always been good at the sciencey, space-time related stuff. The thought of meeting a version of his brother sent excitement throughout his soul. 

“Hey, since you are an awesome monster like myself, I’ll allow you to stay at my place until you find some proper housing,” other him proposed, flicking up his fedora. Papyrus found the gesture amusing though he had a feeling other him did it to make himself look cool. 

Papyrus followed his double back home. The house appeared the same, though there were less lights. Both mailboxes were empty and cleared of mail, even Sans’s! The carpeted floor was clear of all socks and sticky notes, much to Papyrus’s relief. He did find it a bit strange; maybe this Sans actually cleaned up after himself? Papyrus was so proud!

“Make yourself at home,” the other him said, gesturing towards the green couch. 

The fedora-wearing skeleton stomped over to the bottom of the stairs and bellowed out, “SANS! GET DOWN HERE! WE HAVE A GUEST!”

Both of them waited for several minutes for a response. When none came, other Papyrus let out a frustrated scream.

“I bet that low-life is at Grillby’s. He’s always wasting his time at that disgusting place,” other Papyrus snarled. 

His double was awfully judgmental about everything. Papyrus found the behavior a bit off-putting. Sure, he disapproved some of his brother’s unhealthier habits and did not have the best opinion of Grillby’s, but he would never badmouth anyone so readily. 

“WHILE I AGREE THAT GRILLBY’S IS MUCH TOO GREASY FOR ME, IT’S A BIT HARSH TO CALL IT DISGUSTING! THEIR MILK IS QUITE GOOD!”

“Hmph, never had it. Look at all the monsters that waste their time there doing nothing productive.” Other Papyrus looked over at the time. “I'll give you a tour of the place after my favorite show ends!”

The skeleton clicked on the TV and plopped himself down onto the couch next to Papyrus. He rapidly flip to the channel.

“OH, WHAT ARE WE WATCHING? IS IT THE METTATON SHOW? I LOVE HIS SHOWS!” Papyrus exclaimed. 

“His shows are decent. Better than the other trash on TV. But no, this is ‘My Little Boney”. It’s great. Just watch an episode and you’ll love it,” other him explained. “Pinkie Bones is the best, by the way. All other opinions are wrong.”

Papyrus found the show… underwhelming. It wasn’t bad, per say; just far too childish for his liking. He did enjoy the friendship theme in the show, and the strong bond the bonies had with each other. He yearned to make lots of friends. At least he was becoming good friends with other him. 

Halfway through the show, Papyrus heard the front door open. He looked up and saw his brother step inside. Except it wasn’t actually his brother. The Sans’s perpetually grinning face and short, stout body structure were the same. A blue visor sat on his round skull, velcro sneakers replaced the usual pink slippers, and he only had on a light blue zipper jacket with two sets of pockets on each side. He still wore the familiar black track shorts with white stripes. His brother’s double was quite well put together, all things considered. He even wore normal outdoor shoes!

“SANS, WHERE WERE YOU?!” the fedora-wearing skeleton raged, eye lights narrowed into thin slits. “WE HAVE A GUEST OVER AND I HAD NOTHING TO SERVE!”

“s-sorry, bro—”

“AND WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT CALLING ME THAT?!” other Papyrus slammed a fist onto the small table next to the couch, causing the smaller skeleton to flinch in response. “HOW ARE YOU EXPECTED TO ADDRESS ME?!”

The Sans’s white eye lights flickered to the ground in shame and mumbled softly, “a-as chief and n-no… nothing else.”

“CORRECT! MAKE SURE YOU FOLLOW IT!” other Papyrus affirmed with a glare. “AND NOW YOU MADE ME MISS SO MUCH OF THE EPISODE! GO MAKE YOURSELF USEFUL AND MAKE SOMETHING FOR ME AND MY GUEST!”

The Sans gave a nod and, without even a glance or any acknowledgement of Papyrus, shuffled into the kitchen.

Papyrus sat in his spot in shock, his brain still processing the scene. Discomfort churned in his soul and one thing he knew for sure, the way other him treated his brother upset him.

“THAT WASN’T VERY NICE!” Papyrus admonished. 

The other Papyrus glanced at him before a scoff escaped from his mouth, “You don’t know him like I do. He can’t get anything right.”

Which didn’t make any sense to Papyrus as other him had just ordered his brother to cook food. Why didn’t other him just make it himself? Papyrus always made his great spaghetti for others.

An awkward silence fell between the two tall skeletons as the other him continued to watch his show. Papyrus wrung his gloved hands together, peering at the kitchen every now and then. The clattering of pots and pans drifted into his nonexistent ears. He couldn’t sit there any longer.

“I’M GOING TO PROVIDE SOME ASSISTANCE!” His other self only responded with a grunt. 

As Papyrus stepped into the kitchen, he saw his brother’s look-a-like busy mixing ingredients in a large bowl. A bag of flour, eggs, milk and salt decorated the kitchen counter. 

“WHAT ARE YOU MAKING?” Papyrus asked. This didn’t look like spaghetti or oatmeal. 

The sight and sound of Papyrus approaching made Sans freeze, causing the bowl to slip from his hands. Thankfully, Papyrus caught it before it hit the ground. It held a tan, thick and doughy substance inside. Sans gave Papyrus a relieved look, brushing a few beads of sweat from his forehead with the sleeve of his jacket before grasping the bowl back. Papyrus noticed that he took off the visor. 

“th-that was quite catching, heh. and thanks... woulda made a.... a huge mess if you hadn’t caught it,” the short skeleton muttered. His eye lights remained fixated on the contents of the bowl, never once looking at Papyrus. “got a quiche recipe from a friend that i wanted t’try out. hopefully bro—i mean, chief… will like it. if… if you got something you like... i could try and make it for ya.” 

Papyrus noticed a slight trembling in the Sans’s hands as he began to mix the doughy content again. He wasn’t used to seeing someone so alike his brother act so tense around him, and his soul clenched painfully at the sight. His own protective instincts surged through him. 

He slowly and carefully placed a gloved hand on top of the Sans’s much smaller ones. Sans finally looked at him directly. Bewilderment etched on his features.

“THE GREAT PAPYRUS WOULD BE MOST HAPPY TO HELP! MAKING THINGS TOGETHER IS ALWAYS MORE FUN!”

For a second, Sans gave him a grateful, genuine smile, one that melted his heart. It disappeared as quickly as it came.

“th-thanks for offerin’ but... you’re c-chief’s guest. you shouldn’t have t’help me. i’ll take care of it.” Sans gave Papyrus a light shove towards the kitchen entrance. Papyrus noticed that he was staring at the floor again. “relax and… enjoy yourself. this’ll be done within half an hour.”

Papyrus was about to march straight back into the kitchen when the other him called out to him.

“HEY, PAP, METTATON’S SHOW IS ON IF YOU WANT TO WATCH!” 

Not wanting to push the other Sans, as he was clearly uncomfortable in Papyrus’s presence (he ignored the ache in his soul from the rejection), the tall skeleton sat back down on the couch next to his double. 

The other him didn’t even offer to help his brother! Maybe other him wasn’t as nice and cool as he first thought. But he was willing to give his counterpart a chance to prove himself and become a better brother. After all, he was still a Papyrus. Surely he has to have some redeeming qualities.


	2. A Skele-Ton of Puns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus tries some pie (quiche) and realizes that helping these two is lot of harder than he'd expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year! And with a new year, comes my first update of the year! Though it won't be filled with happiness and fluff. And there are way less puns than the title chapter suggest. At least in my opinion, haha.

The Mettaton in this world was not what Papyrus had remembered. For one, he was not a sexy rectangle, which disappointed Papyrus greatly. This Mettaton had a skeleton-shaped body, with dark hair, eyes, a pink-and-black attire and two long, boot-wearing legs that seems to be constantly dancing. Of course, he was made entirely of metal (obviously, because he’s a robot!) instead of bone and completely solid. Papyrus had heard rumors going around back in his world that Mettaton could turn into this form, but he’d always seen the robot as a rectangle, and he preferred that form more. 

Papyrus watched as his double would nod and laugh along at the unfortunate monsters that got roped into one of Mettaton’s crazy acts. He was beginning to enjoy himself, laughing along with his other self. Maybe they did have common interests after all. Did this Papyrus also have a passion for cooking spaghetti for others or enjoyed dinosaur oatmeal? He wouldn’t mind learning about their differences either. That way, they could become even better friends, and Papyrus could teach him how to treat Sans better!

“Hey, Pap,” the other tall skeleton suddenly interjected in a low voice. He leaned close to where Papyrus’s ears would have been if he had them. “You’re a pretty great monster.”

“OF COURSE! PAPYRUS IS ALWAYS THE GREATEST OF MONSTERS!” Papyrus agreed. Was other him... flirting?

“Obviously you’re not as great as myself but pretty close. But hey, since you’re such a cool skeleton, let’s hang out together tomorrow. I made some plans with Mettaton but I’m sure he’d enjoy having two of us around.” 

Other him tipped his fedora and then gave a wink. Papyrus had to admit that he didn’t find the wink nearly as endearing as when Sans did it. In fact, it was kind of creepy. But Papyrus was always willing to give someone a chance.

“WHY, I AM SO VERY FLATTERED. IT WOULD BE A PLEA—“

“food’s ready, chief,” Sans suddenly interrupted. He walked into the room balancing three plates within his hands and left arm. 

Each plate had a crusty, yellow, triangle-shaped substance on it. It was slightly burnt, the edges a dark brown, almost blackish color. There were no sprinkles on it. Overall, though, it looked good, and excitement flooded Papyrus at tasting this Sans’s cooking. His brother had once made, what he’d remembered, a pie that was too salty. This seemed similar to it. Hopefully it was less salty.

The small skeleton suddenly froze, sockets wide with fear. Papyrus gazed at other him, who leveled Sans with an unimpressed stare. He was confused what had frightened Sans so much. He could even hear the faint clattering of plate on bone.

“s-s-sorry chief. i didn’t mean t-to interrupt,” Sans mumbled, eye lights trailing to the ground.

“IT’S FINE, SANS! NO CRYING OVER SPOILED MILK. WE COULD ALWAYS TALK ABOUT IT LATER. LET’S EAT!”

Papyrus hoped this would calm other him down. He didn’t like how Sans always acted so cautiously in front of other him—his own brother. It just wasn’t right. In turn, he tried to give Sans a supportive smile but the short skeleton barely looked at him. Sans stood rooted in his spot, plates still in his hand.

“Well!” his brother snapped.

Sans shakily handed each of them a plate, his brother first followed by Papyrus. He then grabbed the last plate for himself and sat down on the carpeted floor next to Papyrus’s legs and feet. The tall, hatless skeleton frowned at the sight.

“YOU DON’T NEED TO SIT ON THE FLOOR! THERE’S MORE THAN ENOUGH SPACE ON THE COUCH!” Papyrus offered, sliding over a bit to make room.

Sans took a quick glance at fedora-Papyrus before he trailed down onto his food. “don’t worry ‘bout it. i’m simply too, um… _floored_ by this carpet.”

Papyrus’s mind stumbled slightly before he noticed a very faint, barely noticeable, twinkle of amusement in Sans’s white eye lights. He let out a huff, about to give his usual over exaggerated false anger at the pun. His counterpart beat him to it.

“What did I say about using puns in my presence?” other Papyrus demanded. His soft voice belied his rage, a rage that was altogether too real and not false like his usually was.

Sans flinched and stuttered, ”s-s-sorry. i-i won’t do it again.”

Tension filled the room thick enough to cut with a knife. Discomfort crept into Papyrus, making him fidget slightly on the couch. No one started eating. He figured he would do the honors of starting first. 

He cut a forkful and placed it into his mouth. A burst of egg, tomato, and spice flavors flooded into his mouth. He still found it too salty for a pie, and maybe just slightly burnt, but overall it was great. Not as great as his spaghetti, of course, but definitely a close second. 

Papyrus ate three more forkfuls before Sans finally started on his. He took a bite and grimaced, his usual grin becoming strained. He gave a furtive glance at other Papyrus, who cut a tiny piece of his own and stared at it as if it offended him. Papyrus found the whole exchange entirely bizarre, and the tension worsened. 

“Ugh! How is this garbage a pie? It’s entirely too salty and burnt!” other Papyrus complained after he ate the piece. “Did you even add sugar?”

“i-it’s a quiche, n-not a pie, chief,” Sans responded quietly, eye lights dim with disappointment.

“Hmph, in that case, it’s passable but still far from good. I’m sure the Canine Unit would like it given their subpar tastes in food. You can give it to them. I’ll simply have to make my own food from now on.”

Annoyance burst within Papyrus, offended on Sans’s behalf. His own brother had never been so rude and demeaning when critiquing his food. Then again, his brother always sang praises about him, some which, although made him preen on his greatness, he didn’t feel like he fully deserved. 

The royal guard trainee drew his attention to Sans, who got up to clear up the food. When the small skeleton moved to grab his, Papyrus held it back and shove the rest into his mouth. He normally never ate this hastily but this was an exception.

“IT’S A LITTLE BURNT ON THE ENDS BUT I’M SURE WITH PRACTICE, IT’LL BE AS GREAT AS MY SPAGHETTI!” Papyrus praised. He gave Sans an encouraging smile. “I WOULD LOVE TO TRY IT AGAIN!” 

Sans stared at Papyrus with wide sockets, “r-r-really? t-there’s other things i can make for you if you’d like.” Hints of eagerness peeked through in his voice.

Papyrus was about to respond when his double scoffed and waved dismissively. “Yeah, as if your hotcats and dogs are that much greater. Anyway, I need to speak with my friend privately. Go back to Grillby’s or whatever!” 

Sans shrunk back and gave a weak nod. He grabbed Papyrus’s empty plate and the other two barely eaten quiches and scrambled back into the kitchen. Moments later, he came back out and left out the door. Papyrus turned to other him and folded his arms across his chest.

“OTHER ME, I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED AT HOW YOU TREAT SANS!” 

“You’re not serious, are you? I treat him much better than he deserves! Don’t you see how the townspeople avoid me? It’s most likely all because of him! He’s an embarrassment to me!”

Papyrus frowned deeply. An idea—a brilliant one, in his opinion—suddenly popped into his head, “IF YOU DO NOT START TREATING HIM BETTER, THEN I’LL DECLINE YOUR DATE OFFER FOR TOMORROW!”

He was sure this would convince his double, who gave him a disappointed look. A pregnant pause hovered above the two skeletons. Eventually, his double replied back with thinly veiled contempt, “Does he remind you of your brother? Is this why you’re treating him like this? How thoughtful of you.”

Did he think of this Sans as his brother? 

No, he didn’t. Although this Sans looked like his brother, they acted entirely too different. Though he still liked and would gladly help this Sans. Brother or not, he was still a Sans, and Papyrus would never abandon his brother, even a different version of him. 

“Either way,” his other self continued. “I would like you to spend some time with me tomorrow, so I’ll agree to your proposition.” 

“REALLY? SEE, I KNEW YOU HAD IT IN YOU!”

The non-native skeleton jumped up in excitement and happiness. He couldn’t wait to tell this Sans the good news! He would have to find him though. 

“Yeah, yeah!” other Papyrus muttered flippantly. He briefly glanced outside. “Anyway, I need to get started on my royal guard duties. You okay staying here by yourself? Feel free to look around.”

“WHY THANK YOU, OTHER ME! I WILL!”

Once Papyrus was alone, he decided to search for Sans. He had seen the hurt expression on the smaller monster’s face when he’d left the house. He hoped telling Sans the good news would make him feel better. The only issue was finding where he went. He figured stopping at Grillby’s first would be best.

Grillby’s was pretty much how he remembered it, noisy, warm and smelling of grease. If Papyrus had a throat, he would have gagged. He was disappointed to see no Sans sitting at the usual seat by the bar counter. The patrons all stared at him before going about their chattering. Papyrus took wide steps towards Grillby, who gave him a nod of acknowledgement. 

“Who is that? Another Papyrus?”

“Maybe a relative?”

“Oh, boy, another one of them? Isn’t one enough?”

Papyrus ignored the rude chattering around him, figuring it was all an innocent misunderstanding. He would clear it up later.

“HELLO! HAVE YOU SEEN SANS?” Papyrus asked.

The bartender shook his head but then pointed at the first table near the door. The Canine Unit typically sat there. They looked more like actual dogs in armor and less awkward compared to the ones back home. The leftover quiche was, to Papyrus’s surprise, not on their table. He greeted them and introduced himself. They were more welcoming than the other Snowdin residents had been thus far.

“HAVE YOU SEEN SANS?”

Doggo took a drag of his dog treat before pointing towards the door, “He’s probably out doing his sentry duties.”

Ah, so he was working! Good to know this Sans wasn’t as lazy as his brother. 

The tall skeleton thanked the dog monsters and went back into Snowdin Forest. He wandered around, noting that his puzzles remained mostly unchanged though the paths leading to each one differed slightly. The spaghetti normally left out as a trap for the human was missing, as well as the cardboard sentry station that he and his brother had built together. 

He took a few more steps before he heard something slither behind him. 

“Howdy, I’m Flowey, Flowey the Flower!” a sweet, shrill voice greeted from behind him.

He spun around and found himself face to face with a familiar yellow flower grinning up at him.

“HELLO FLOWEY! IT’S NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN!” Papyrus hadn’t seen his flower friend in so long.

Flowey surveyed him with confusion etched on his face.

“Are you really Papyrus? You’re much… nicer and way less annoying than usual,” Flowey mumbled. An odd glint appeared in his beady eyes. “Hey! You’re not from around here are you? How new and exciting!” 

Vines suddenly surrounded him. Before he could comprehend what was happening, they swiftly wrapped around his arms and legs, rooting him in his spot with barely any way to move. Flowey gave him a face-splitting grin.

“Golly, I’m going to have so much fun playing around with you. Now I can finally let out all my frustration. I would prefer to do it to the other Papyrus but you’ll do!” Flowey beamed. 

“FLOWEY, SURELY WE CAN TALK ABOUT THIS WITHOUT A VIOLENCE! AREN’T WE FRIENDS?” 

The flower monster’s eyes narrowed, “Are you trying to be funny? You, or the other you, are the most annoying monster I’ve ever had the displeasure of interacting. Almost as bad as Jerry!”

Papyrus felt the pressure on his right arm increase enough to fracture his ulna. He groaned in pain. Just as he thought his arm was going to snap, the pressure disappeared. A white bone was half buried within Flowey’s main stem. The flower shrieked in pain. Two more bones stabbed into his stem, causing the vines around Papyrus to loosen enough for him to escape.

“you stirrin’ up trouble again, you nasty flower,” a voice drawled. There was a familiar, baritone quality to it.

Sans stood behind Flowey, glaring at the plant monster with black, eyeless sockets. A few more bones hovered behind him, ready to attack.

“SANS, YOU ARE SUCH A DISAPPOINTMENT!” Flowey mimicked in a voice too reminiscent of this world’s Papyrus. 

The small skeleton recoiled as if struck, taking several steps back, and the bone attack dissipated in an instant. His white eye lights reappeared, dim and as pinpricks.

“Man, you’re even more pathetic than your brother says,” Flowey commented, summoning his own round bullets. “You can’t even save anyone properly!”

Papyrus had heard enough, his soul filled with protective instinct. He ignored the sharp pain in his fractured right arm and sent out a column of white and blue bones of varying height. Flowey took almost every hit, not expecting the attack. He let out an angry scream before disappearing into a hole underground. 

Sans hunched into himself, appearing even smaller than usual. Papyrus slowly made his way over to him. The short skeleton must have heard him approach.

“s-sorry ‘bout your arm,” Sans apologized timidly. He stared at the ground and wrung his hands together in front of his zipped jacket before pulling out a cinnamon bunny from a pocket. “h-here, this should heal it.”

Papyrus didn’t understand why Sans felt the need to apologize for something he hadn’t done. He couldn’t stand it any longer. He slowly crouched down to Sans’s height and pulled his not-brother into a hug. The cinnabun dropped into the snow.

“It’s not your fault, Sans,” Papyrus replied. His voice was soft and filled with warmth. “And you’re not a disappointment. In fact, I think you are quite cool for saving the Great Papyrus from such a tight situation!”

They were silent for several seconds before he heard a low chuckle, “heh, that really tickled my funny bone.”

Papyrus broke the embrace and scrutinized Sans, whose grin widened.

“WAS THAT A PUN?” 

His false anger mustn’t have reached through to Sans as the small skeleton flinched back. Papyrus wasn't going to give Sans the opportunity to apologize; he laughed heartily, “IT WAS QUITE FUNNY. BUT NEXT TIME, PUT A LITTLE MORE _BACKBONE_ INTO IT, NYEH HEH HEH!”

The effect was almost instantaneous. Sans stared back at him in shock before snickering escaped his mouth. His eye lights grew nearly twice their size and twinkled brightly with excitement. Papyrus’s soul flooded with happiness at the sight and sound of Sans’s laughter. 

Denying Sans the freedom to use puns simply did not sit well with him. At all. Despite the fact he always reacted to his brother’s puns in anger, it was never serious. Truthfully, he enjoyed his brother’s puns but simply found them too childish. Either way, this was another matter he had to discuss with his other self. 

“don’t worry since i’ve got a ton of ‘em—a _skele-ton_.” Sans gave him a wink, which Papyrus found much cuter (and way less creepy) than the one he’d received earlier.

“HEHEHEHEH! THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL NOT BE BEAT IN THI—OWIE!” Sharp pain shot through his right arm as Papyrus swept it up. 

“y-your arm… the cinnabun!” Sans peered around frantically to look for the cinnabun he’d dropped. He found it seconds later half buried in the snow. He pulled it out, dusted it off with the sleeve of his jacket and handed it to Papyrus. His eye lights trailed back at the ground again.

Papyrus carefully grasped the hand holding out the cinnamon bunny, “IT’S NOT YOUR FAULT! BESIDES, A SIMPLE FRACTURE WOULD NOT STOP THE GREAT PAPYRUS!” 

He brought the healing item into his mouth with his left hand, keeping his right around Sans’s hand. He sighed as he felt the crack in his ulna heal.

“hey, pap,” Sans began, taking a few peeking glances at Papyrus. “why couldn’t the skeleton drink or eat properly?”

Hearing him being called Pap by that familiar voice sent a wave of homesickness within him. Papyrus quickly shook himself out of it, not wanting to ignore the joke. 

“WHY? HE WAS TOO COOL?”

“nope, cuz it’ll _go right through him_.”

The two of them broke into laughter. 

“NOW THAT WAS A _BONE-CHILLING_ JOKE!” Papyrus commented after their laughter settled down. 

“hey, um, pap… you, uh... don’t mind if i call you that right? you looked kinda sad when i called you that earlier.”

The tall skeleton was shocked that Sans had noticed and berated himself for being so obvious. But as he thought about the question, he really didn’t mind. It reminded him of his Sans. 

“OF COURSE NOT! IN FACT, I’D LIKE IT IF YOU USED IT!” he beamed.

“ok, great, just checkin t’make sure,” the short skeleton mumbled. 

The two of them traded a few more jokes before Papyrus suggested they head back since it was getting dark. His soul felt lighter than it had since he’d gotten here, thrilled to see this Sans beginning to open up to him. As he peered down at Sans, he noticed a faint dusting of blue across his not-brother’s cheekbones.

“hey, uh, pap, since you’re new around here, i was wondering if… if you’d like me to show you around tomorrow? there’s this really nice place i’d like to show you.”

Papyrus was about to say yes but remembered he’d already set up a date with his other self, and Papyrus was a skeleton of his words. It would also be a good opportunity to have a nice, long chat with his double.

“I’M AFRAID I CAN’T FOR I HAVE ALREADY SET A DATE WITH YOUR BROTHER.”

Sans stared down at his feet, his eye lights dim, “oh ok, that’s… good. my bro—i mean, chief, is the coolest... you’ll enjoy it.”

Papyrus felt a stab of pain at the reminder of how his brother always called him the coolest monster in the Underground. Some things never change, no matter how poorly his other self treated this Sans. He hoped by talking with his double, other him would see the error of his ways. 

“DO NOT WORRY, SANS! I WILL BE HAPPY TO SPEND TIME WITH YOU SOME OTHER TIME!” Papyrus reassured. “AND BY AGREEING TO THE DATE, I WANTED HIM TO TREAT YOU BETTER!”

Sans suddenly froze, causing Papyrus to crash into him. Papyrus was about to ask if anything was wrong when he noticed faint trembling in the short skeleton’s shoulders. Papyrus went to comfort the shaking monster when he suddenly spun around, glaring at Papyrus.

“whoa there bud, that’s some rude assumptions you’re makin’. there’s nothing wrong with how my bro treats me!”

Papyrus’s soul clenched painfully. Did this Sans really believe everything his brother did to him was normal? 

“HE'S ALWAYS CRITICIZING YOU SO RUDELY AND TELLING YOU WHAT TO DO EVEN THOUGH IT MAKES YOU UNHAPPY! THAT’S NOT HOW BROTHERS TREAT EACH OTHER!” 

Papyrus placed a gloved hand on Sans’s left shoulder in a soothing gesture, who pulled away and shook his head ruefully.

“then maybe i deserve it. i’m always holding him back. and he works hard as a royal guard so he could make enough to support us, especially since i lost my other job.” Sans took several steps away from Papyrus, looking as if he was about to run away.

“WAIT NO! I DIDN’T MEAN IT LIKE THAT. I JUST—”

Sans didn’t wait to hear what he had to say. The small skeleton turned away from Papyrus and sprinted off towards Snowdin without him. An ache settled into Papyrus soul. This was going to be a lot harder than he’d expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't have the art book currently on me to check but Mettaton was originally going to be much more humanoid. I took some artistic liberties about him not having his calculator form since there wasn't much comment on it from the art book. Flowey is mostly the same as he appears in the game. And since Toby made a comment about how Sans was actually supposed to say more skeleton puns but he didn't find it as funny as he'd initially though, I used that idea here.
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading and feel free to chat with me! :]


	3. Date Start!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus goes on a "date" with himself. It does not end well...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Chapter warnings: emotional manipulation, implied sexual content, implied/referenced incest**

When Papyrus finally got back to the house, Sans had already disappeared into his room for the rest of the evening. He knocked on his door, hoping to apologize for offending the smaller skeleton but never received a reply. When his double finally told him to forget about it and that the lazybones was probably asleep already, the non-native skeleton relented and decided he’d apologize later. 

Papyrus realized, in retrospective, it may not have been the best idea to make the claim that he did to Sans. His own brother would have probably been just as offended if someone made similar comments about Papyrus. 

The tall skeleton tossed and turned in his temporary bed on the living room couch. He couldn’t sleep because his mind kept drifting back to the question of how he’d ended up in this strange but familiar world. He fretted over the fact that his brother may be alone without any idea where he was or how he was doing. He had meant to ask this world’s Sans to see if he had any ideas but never got the chance. He still planned to find a way back home after he’d fixed the relationship between these two brothers. 

After sifting through several channels and completing an episode of The Mettaton Show, Papyrus finally felt himself drift to sleep. 

He woke up the next morning to find himself covered by a thin, gray blanket. Humming drifted from the kitchen. It sounded like the ‘My Little Boney’ theme song. Papyrus sat up, neatly folded the blanket and placed it on one side of the couch before walking into the kitchen. His double was eating a bowl of cereal while reading the newspaper. He looked up as Papyrus walk in.

“Was wondering when you’ll be up. Help yourself with some cereal,” he greeted, gesturing towards the box of cereal. 

“THANK YOU FOR THE BLANKET THOUGH I DON’T NORMALLY GET COLD AT NIGHT!” 

His double stared back at Papyrus with confusion etched on his face, “That wasn’t me.”

“OH,” was all Papyrus could say. It must’ve been from Sans. He looked around but saw no sight of the short skeleton. “DID SANS LEAVE ALREADY?”

“Yeah, he’s at work.” Displeasure dripped from his voice.

Papyrus sat across from his counterpart, who continued to read the paper. He stared at breakfast; it was a box of crispy flakes. 

“DO YOU HAVE DINOSAUR OATMEAL?” 

Other Papyrus finally closed the newspaper and stared at him nonplussed, “No, I don’t believe so. If you like that stuff, you can always pick up some from the Store. We can stop there after our date.”

Right. Date. He’d almost forgotten about that. How could he have forgotten something so important?! He would definitely have to take some time to get ready. He’d need to put on his Bone Cologne and all the MTT-Brand creams and makeup… which he suddenly realized he didn’t have with him. 

Papyrus broke out of his thoughts when he heard his doppleganger begin to clear up the kitchen area of the cereal. It was a bit rude to assume that he had finished when he hadn’t eaten anything at all, but he reasoned that since it wasn’t oatmeal or spaghetti it didn’t matter as much. 

“Oh right, before we head out, I still haven’t given you a tour of this auspicious place,” other him said with a wide sweep of his arms and a flick of his fedora. He then got up and stood at the doorway between the kitchen and living room. 

Papyrus noticed that his armor looked shinier than usual, and he wore a dark trench coat on top of it. Papyrus found the attire strange.

“That’s the living area, as you already know. And upstairs is my room.” 

The door had a sign that read ‘The Prodigious Papyrus’s room. No Girls Allowed. No boys allowed. No small white dogs or brothers allowed!” Papyrus frowned in disapproval at that last part, not at all impressed. He kept quiet though, deciding to wait until a good time to bring up the topic to other him.

The fedora-wearing skeleton toured all the upstairs and downstairs rooms of the house. Papyrus knew this house fairly well, since it was almost an exact replica of his own home; however, it would be rude to interrupt. He stood along the wall next to the garbage can and gave it a quick glance. There was a huge black trash bag sitting in it.

“Garbage, huh? Boy do I know garbage,” other Papyrus boasted. “After all, I’m housemates with a lazy bag of trash!”

“OH, REALLY? I ALSO HAVE A BAG OF TRASH! I CALL HIM TRASHY!” Papyrus announced excitedly. Who knew they had both named their garbage.

Other him howled with laughter, “Trashy, hah! That’s a great name! I need to start calling him that now. Turns out you’re not as much of a whiteknight as I thought you were. I’m glad since, honestly, all your preaching of treating him better was getting irritating.”

Papyrus had no idea what a ‘whiteknight’ was (maybe some position in the Royal Guard?). He had the distinct feeling they were talking about two separate things. Before he had the chance to ask, his double motioned for him to follow. 

The two skeletons walked outside of Snowdin, with other him giving a brief tour of the bustling town. He was directed to the shop, actually dubbed Store. It was only three blocks from their house. They then traversed into Waterfall until they reached the Riverperson’s boat. 

“Get us to Hotland. Close to the MTT Resort,” other Papyrus ordered. “And make sure you hurry up. We’re late!”

“YOU SHOULDN’T BE SO RUDE!” Papyrus scolded. 

The Riverperson’s dark hood trailed at the hat-wearing skeleton and said, “Heed yourself... or lose everything… Tra la la.” Other Papyrus ignored the warning and continued to mumble complaints under his breath.

The MTT Resort had an ornately designed black gate surrounding its perimeter. Two round seats sat in front of the actual resort building, one of them hidden partially under a large white-and-red umbrella. The inside was even more high-class, with two thick, white marble pillars that grew from the ground to touch the ceiling. They stood on each side of the entrance. The elaborate fountain in the center of the resort lobby spewed out crystal blue water. It was truly a magnificent place that wholly matched Mettaton’s tastes.

Papyrus followed his double into a dimly lit restaurant with a stage. As they made their way towards the back corner, Papyrus caught sight of the sign that had Sans listed as one of the upcoming performers. Was it another job on top of sentry duty?

Once the two skeletons sat down, other Papyrus motioned for the waiter. He ordered a steak with Mettaton’s face on it while Papyrus ordered spaghetti and meatballs. Other him’s eye lights darted between the door and the clock on the back wall.

“Tch, where is Mettaton?” the hat wearing skeleton growled.

“MAYBE SOMETHING CAME UP AND HE’S RUNNING LATE?” Papyrus suggested. 

He found it strange to be on a date with two monsters or maybe this was a friendship outing and he had misinterpreted his other self’s actions? 

“BESIDES, DIDN’T YOU SAY THAT WE WERE LATE AS WELL?”

“Well he’s making me wait even longer!” The other skeleton flipped up his fedora and huffed, setting his arms on the table. He leaned his head on the palm of his right hand, looking bored. 

The two monsters sat silently in their seats, each staring off at different directions in the restaurant. Papyrus was disappointed that other him didn’t attempt to start a conversation, so he decided to do it instead. 

“ARE THERE MANY PERFORMANCES HERE?” 

Other him gave a passing glance at the stage before his eye lights trailed to Papyrus, “Yeah. They’re mostly stupid and unfunny comedy routines.” 

“IS YOUR BROTHER ONE OF THEM? I SAW HIS NAME ON THE LIST OF SHOWS!” Papyrus gave himself a mental pat on the back for flawlessly transitioning into this topic he had been waiting to bring up.

The other Papyrus grimaced with distaste. “Yeah, though I don’t know why Mettaton gave him a job here with his terrible repertoire of puns.”

“I’M SURE THERE’LL BE MONSTERS WHO FIND IT FUNNY!”

“Hmph, it’s more of a waste of time!” other him snarled, his eye lights shrunken into pinpricks. “He could be putting his efforts into more useful and better paying jobs!”

Irritation bubbled forth within Papyrus and his gloved hands were clenched tightly under the table. He took a deep, calming breath and continued, “I THINK SANS HAS MANY GREAT QUALITIES! SURELY THERE’S SOMETHING THAT YOU’RE APPRECIATIVE OF HIM FOR!”

His double scoffed and rolled his eyes. Papyrus was about to continue on his tirade when he noticed a strange, hungry glint in the other skeleton’s face, who chuckled lightly, “I guess you’re right, Pap. He does have his uses here and there.”

Discomfort permeated Papyrus’s soul from other him’s strange look and way he’d phrased his answer. He shook his uncertainty away, voicing his opinions on being a more supportive brother. His other self agreed flippantly, eyes still going back and forth between the door and the clock.

The two monsters chatted about other topics. Papyrus discovered that his double loved talking about himself. He heard about how hard other him trained every day to get into the Royal Guard and what his job entailed. Papyrus’s soul fluttered with excitement as he imagined himself doing duties such as catching rule-breaking monsters and providing his services to the community. 

“IS UNDYNE ALSO CAPTAIN HERE?” he asked.

His counterpart’s face contorted with distaste, “Yeah, she is, unfortunately. She’s unfit for the position, in my opinion.”

The remark surprised Papyrus, as he could never imagine Undyne as anything other than Captain of the Royal Guard. Then again, maybe this Undyne was different like everyone else? He would like to meet her before he eventually left this world.

Their food eventually came with no signs of Mettaton showing up. The Royal Guard member voiced his displeasure numerous times throughout their meal. Papyrus tried to ease his counterpart’s concerns and even offered to pay for the two meals to appease him. He didn’t know why other him was so anxious to meet up with Mettaton. It wasn’t as if they were dating… right?

Papyrus was proven wrong when the two of them stepped out of the restaurant into the resort lobby and saw Mettaton standing by the fountain. He had his hands on his hips, and fury marred his metallic face. As soon as the robot saw other Papyrus, he stomped over to them.

“First you’re late, and now I see you cheating on me with someone else?!” the robot screech.

The native Papyrus looked beyond himself with indignant rage. “I’m late? You’re the one that’s late! We waited for you but you never showed up!”

“Me? Late? _Darling_ ,” Mettaton bit out that particular word with revulsion. “I had waited for you for thirty minutes before I saw you walk in with _him_.” The robot pointed an accusing finger at Papyrus.

The tension in the air was so thick even a knife wouldn’t have been able to cut through it. Monsters stared at the scene in complete silence. The only way to salvage this horrible situation was for Papyrus to at least be polite and introduce himself.

“HELLO METTATON! I’M PAPYRUS BUT YOU CAN CALL ME PAP!” 

Mettaton ignored Papyrus’s offered hand and glared at him. He then reared his angry finger at the native Papyrus.

“Going on a date with yourself? I guess it fits perfectly with someone like you,” the robot flipped his right-sided bangs. Was that glitter coming out of his hair?

“We are not going out! I just thought it’d be nice for us all to hang out!” other Papyrus argued.

Mettaton scoffed and shook his head, “You’re never on time, never show any appreciation for me and only ever seem to think about yourself! I cannot take this anymore! We are through!” The robot stormed out without another glance.

Other Papyrus stared at Mettaton’s retreating back in utter shock before his skeletal face morphed into indignant anger. Papyrus expected his doppleganger to run out after Mettaton and apologize, but the taller skeleton simply walked out of the MTT Resort with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his trench coat.

The two skeletons walked back to Snowdin in silence. Papyrus kept glancing at his double every now and then. The rim of his hat covered most of his face so Papyrus couldn’t see the other’s expression. He must have felt devastated. 

Papyrus was hurt himself. He had not been informed that other him and Mettaton were dating. He would have definitely declined his double’s offer to “hang out” if he’d known. 

As the two skeletons neared the house, Sans was standing in the front, about to open the door. The small skeleton saw the two of them and walked over.

“h-heya, how’d everything go?” he asked hesitantly. The white pinpricks of light in his sockets darted nervously between the two Papyruses.

Much to Papyrus and Sans’s surprise, the younger brother crumpled heavily into the snowy ground. Sans was immediately at his side.

“hey c-chief, what’s wrong?” He placed a tentative hand on his brother’s shoulder. “are ya hurt anywhere?”

Papyrus heard a sniff coming from other him, followed by a soft and sad, “Mettaton broke up with me.”

Sans’s sockets widened in shock. Papyrus briefly wondered if it was because he never knew they were together or because he was actually surprised by the news. Either way, the white armor-clad skeleton could not let his double mope any longer.

“DO NOT WORRY MY FRIEND! THERE WILL BE OTHER GREAT MONSTERS TO DATE IN THE FUTURE!” Papyrus placed a comforting hand on his double’s other shoulder. 

Sans gave him an appreciative smile before turning back to his brother, “yeah, chief, forget ‘bout mettaton. he probably broke up with you ‘cause you were just too cool for him. c’mon, let’s get back inside and get your mind off of this.”

The native Papyrus sniffled and nodded weakly. Sans helped his brother stand up.

“You head back first. I need to speak with Pap.”

Sans gave a nod and went inside. The fedora-wearing skeleton immediately turned to Papyrus. Despite the sniffling, there were no tears in his sockets nor was there any indication that he’d been crying. A strange expression came about his face, the same one Papyrus had seen back at the restaurant.

“Hey Pap, you mind stopping at the Snowdin Store to pick up some ketchup for me? You can take your time and get that oatmeal you wanted as well.”

“SURE! LEAVE IT TO THE GREAT PAPYRUS!” 

The Royal Guard trainee made his way into the Store. A homely bunny wearing a bonnet, which pressed down her long ears, greeted him. 

“Is there anything I can help you with, dear?” the shopkeeper asked.

“THANK YOU FOR OFFERING BUT I WILL BE FINE ON MY OWN!” 

The rabbit monster gave a nod and turned to her next customer. Papyrus wandered through the different aisles of the store, staring at all the options available in awe. This place was definitely bigger than the Shop back home. This store seemed to have just about everything!

Papyrus found his favorite oatmeal with the miniature dinosaurs in them. He also had no issues finding the ketchup as he’d gotten it many times for his brother. Was other him planning on giving it to Sans? That would be so nice of him. 

An hour later, Papyrus made it back to the house with his arms full of cooking ingredients, oatmeal and ketchup. Darkness blanketed the entire house. Neither Sans nor other him were anywhere downstairs. He set the groceries down on the kitchen counter and wandered upstairs. A soft muttering of words came out of other Papyrus’s room. The door was closed.

“Sansss,” he heard his counterpart groan. “...you’re so good.”

Papyrus figured the two were reading bedtime stories and would want their privacy. He went back downstairs and got started on making his friendship spaghetti. He was just about to pound the last tomato when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. 

“heya pap, whatcha makin’?”

“MY FAMOUS FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI!” Papyrus exclaimed.

 _SPLAT!_ Tomato juice flew into the air, some landing in the bowl with the rest of the sauce. 

Papyrus turned around as Sans strolled in with the widest grin he had seen thus far on his face. Papyrus felt his face heat up as his eyes fell upon the shorter skeleton’s unzipped jacket, exposing a few of his white ribs. Sans must’ve noticed as well, as he hastily zipped it back up and stared at the tiled floor, blue dusting his cheeks.

“so, uh… i wanted to apologize for yesterday. i know you meant well so sorry for snappin’ at ya.”

Papyrus shook his head, “I SHOULD BE THE ONE TO APOLOGIZE! I SHOULD NOT HAVE MADE THOSE ASSUMPTIONS!”

“it’s no... _bone_ off my shoulder, heh,” Sans scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. 

Papyrus smiled at the pun, and was about to throw one back when his counterpart sauntered in, looking as if he hadn’t just been dumped several hours ago. He gave Papyrus a nod before picking up the bottle of ketchup and handing it to Sans.

Papyrus’s soul clenched painfully, and as he watched the scene, a new emotion surfaced within him. It was one that he hadn’t felt since he was a babybones—an emotion he’d only ever felt when he saw the other children playing around without him or when his brother spent more time at Grillby’s instead of at home with him. 

He should be happy things were finally beginning to get better for the two brothers. Then why did he feel so upset and jealous at seeing the native Sans give his double that adoring smile?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be on a look out for the corresponding pics from the art book on my tumblr. knowmeknot101.tumblr.com
> 
> Thanks for reading! :]


	4. Cooking with Undyne

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus is feeling a little down from homesickness. Sans decides to have him meet Undyne. After a passionate cooking session, Sans makes a promise to Papyrus.

Whatever Sans and other Papyrus did after Mettaton broke up with the latter seemed to have somewhat improved the brothers’ relationship. There were still instances where the fedora-wearing skeleton would call Sans lazy and useless or criticize him harshly but he would always apologize the following day along with an apology gift. Sans would forgive him every time. Papyrus was happy to see his other self trying to become a better brother though something still felt a bit off. The siblings’ increased time together only left him feeling lonely and homesick. That was why when Papyrus’s counterpart and Sans were at work, Papyrus oftentimes wandered around town.

During one of his outings, he overheard some monsters whispering rude and snide remarks about him. They gave him looks of disgust and left without listening to a word he’d said when he tried to speak to them. Feeling upset and hurt, Papyrus dragged himself back to his double’s house and flicked on the TV.

As he watched an episode of The Mettaton Show, he imagined himself back home, watching it with his brother. He thought back to when they would always have dinner together in the living room and how he would yell at Sans when he left ketchup stains on the couch. He missed his brother and home, and the similarity of this house’s layout to his own only further dampened his mood. 

Papyrus laid on the couch, listlessly watching the end credits of the show, when he heard the front door opening. He looked up and saw Sans walk in. Papyrus forced his face into a bright smile, not wanting to worry the short skeleton. 

“pap, what’s wrong?” Sans asked. Concern etched on his face. 

“OH, NOTHING’S WRONG!” Papyrus answered too quickly. 

Sans didn’t look convinced. The two of them fell into an awkward silence before Sans walked over and sat down next to him.

“hey, chief wanted me to give a message to undyne. and since i’m on my break, do you, maybe, wanna come?”

Papyrus suddenly sat up, staring at the shorter skeleton in excitement, “REALLY?! I WOULD LOVE TO MEET UNDYNE!” 

The two of them took the Riverperson’s boat into Waterfall. The Riverperson welcomed them on with no wise words of advice this time. When they reached their destination Papyrus spotted, what appeared to be, Undyne’s house. Instead of the fish’s mouth facing the ground, acting as a door, the fish looked to be jumping up from the ground, mouth agape in the air. Papyrus sprinted off towards the house in his excitement, leaving Sans trailing behind. He couldn’t wait to see his best friend again.

“wait, pap,” Sans called out, running to keep up with the taller skeleton. “undyne may attack—”

Sans never got the chance to complete his warning, as Papyrus pounded on the door and, when it opened, met a spear to his face. He quickly dodged out of the way. 

A blue fish woman, wearing heavy armor from head to toe, charged towards the tall skeleton, rapidly thrusting the point of her spear. Papyrus dodged several of the spear thrusts and parried her next slew of attacks with a wall of bones. The tall skeleton and fish captain traded blows back and forth, with spears and bones raining down the area, until both were left panting. Sans took this opportunity to step between the two and to prevent any further destruction or injuries.

“as you might now realize, undyne, pap here,” the short monster pointed in Papyrus’s direction, “is not my bro. so it would be nice if you’d stop attacking him.”

“HELLO UNDYNE! I’M PAPYRUS BUT YOU CAN CALL ME PAP!” the tall skeleton introduced, puffing out his chest. 

This Undyne’s reaction to meeting him was nearly the same as how Undyne back home reacted. The fish monster surveyed the two of them for a moment before she dispersed her weapon and gave a roar of laughter. Her sharp teeth glinted in the light from her house.

“Well obviously. Your brother would never be able to keep up with me for that long!” the Royal Guard captain cackled. 

Sans’s sockets narrowed at Undyne’s backhanded comment towards his brother but didn’t refute it. 

“speaking of which, he’s left a message for you.” Sans handed a letter to Undyne.

Undyne perused the letter, and irritation appeared on her face. She crushed the note and haphazardly tossed it into a trashcan next to her house. 

“That slacker’s requesting a week off to go to his stupid ‘boney’ convention. Are you requesting off as well?”

“nope, i’ll be workin’.”

Papyrus noticed an expression that looked suspiciously like pity cross her features. It quickly disappeared, and Undyne turned to face him.

“So you’re Pap, huh?” 

“YES, IT IS I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS. BACK WHERE I COME FROM, I KNEW AN UNDYNE WHO WAS ALSO CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD. SHE WAS MY BEST FRIEND!”

“Was she, now? That’s, uh, pretty cool.” 

Undyne gave a furtive, confused glance at Sans, who appeared a bit shocked himself. Papyrus realized the start of a misunderstanding brewing, and he wasn’t going to let that happen again.

“I AM NOT TOO SURE MYSELF BUT I COME FROM AN UNDERGROUND SIMILAR TO THIS ONE BUT WITH VARIOUS DIFFERENCES AS WELL. IT IS A PUZZLE I AM STILL TRYING TO SOLVE!”

Understanding dawned upon Sans’s face, which Papyrus was glad for, as he could talk about it later with the smaller skeleton. Confusion still remained on Undyne’s face.

“it’s complicated,” Sans replied. “don’t worry too much about it.”

The fish captain gave the two skeletons a suspicious look before her lips curled into a toothy grin.

“Alright, as long as Pap isn’t disrupting anything, he’s fine by me. And you were great back there! With some more training, I can easily see you becoming part of the Royal Guards!” 

Undyne strode over to Papyrus to give him a forceful pat on the back, who puffed out his chest in pride. He was glad this Undyne warmed up to him so quickly. Some things really weren’t all that different.

“Hey, I know. It’s almost lunchtime. How about you two join me for some passionate cooking!”

Papyrus practically jumped out of his boots in joy. He couldn’t’ve asked for a better friendship building activity.

“YES, LET’S MAKE FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI TO HONOR THIS WONDERFUL DAY!” Papyrus exclaimed.

Undyne swung an arm around the tall skeleton and gave him a noogie, which had him hollering with his eyes bulging out. Undyne laughed heartily. 

“Pap, I like the way you think! C’mon, Sans, you should join us too!”

“i should get back t’ work. my break’s almost over and chief’ll be—”

Undyne wasn’t having any of it, and swiftly seized the shorter skeleton’s arm, dragging both him and Papyrus into her house. The interior was pretty much the same layout as Papyrus had remembered except for a fishbowl with… a pet fish? Papyrus wondered how that worked. A fish having a pet fish? Wouldn’t that be like a bunny walking a bunny? Papyrus decided to simply roll with it.

Undyne rushed about to pull out all the ingredients. Papyrus would normally help out as well but he didn’t want to be rude opening the fridge and going through the cabinets of an almost-stranger’s house. He saw Sans standing off towards the side, eyes glancing nervously between the clock and the door every few seconds. Papyrus placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“DON’T BE IN SUCH A RUSH TO GET BACK TO WORK.” Papyrus never thought he’d ever say those words to someone that’s basically a version of his brother, but there was a first time for everything. “COOKING WITH FRIENDS IS A GREAT BONDING ACTIVITY! WINK!”

Papyrus felt Sans relax, and his brother’s double gave him a weak smile. 

“ok.”

Before long, Papyrus and Undyne pounded away at the ingredients, both of them passionately smashing all the tomatoes to make the sauce. Some of it splattered on the ceiling, and Sans had to use his magic to help remove it. Next came stirring the pasta, which had Undyne summoning her spear. Both Papyrus and Undyne chattered passionately about the best type of pasta, naming a whole slew of them, while Sans threw in some pasta-related puns every now and then. 

“Alright, now for the final step: TURN UP THE HEAT! Let the stove symbolize your passion!” Undyne shouted.

“YES! LET YOUR HOPES AND DREAMS TURNING INTO BURNING FLAMES!” Papyrus affirmed.

“That’s right! READY? Don’t hold anything back!!!”

Papyrus spun the dial on the stove until he reached the highest setting. The fire quickly grew until it engulfed the bottom of the pot, flames eating away at the metal. Soon, smoke billowed out from the stove.

“uh, guys, i think it’s gettin’ too _heated_ in here,” Sans remarked, pointing at the sizzling pot. 

“But our passion!” Undyne argued.

“passion ain’t gonna help you when your house burns down.”

_BOOM!_

The pot exploded, sending pieces of hot metal and pasta flying everywhere. All three monsters ducked for cover. Flames spread down the stove and towards any flammable substance in the vicinity. Both Undyne and Papyrus flailed around, searching for any water. Papyrus almost thought about dumping the little bit from the fishbowl before realizing that would probably lead to him getting suplexed by Undyne.

Thankfully, Sans was able to, somehow, dump buckets of water (because they were in Waterfall) on the fiery stove and the surrounding area, extinguishing the fire. All three monsters sat outside after Undyne had opened all the windows in the house to air out the smoke. Papyrus couldn’t help but laugh at how Undyne’s house looked like a smoking fish. 

“NGAHHH! This was fun guys!” Undyne grinned. “Thanks for saving my house, Sans. I owe you one!”

Sans waved off her gratitude and slowly began walking back towards Snowdin. Papyrus got up as well, briefly wondering if Sans had somehow used his shortcuts to get the water into the house that quickly.

“And Pap! That was some awesome, passionate cooking from you! We should do it again!”

“OF COURSE! I’LL BE LOOKING FORWARD TO OUR NEXT COOKING LESSON AGAIN, UNDYNE!”

Papyrus was just about to run off to catch up to Sans when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. Undyne stared at him with a serious expression.

“Hey, this may not really be any of my business, but take care of him,” the fish captain indicated at Sans’s retreating form with that last word. “I’ve see how his bro acts around him, and it’s not right. I know him enough to know he’ll never ask for help, or heck, if he even realizes anything’s wrong. But maybe you can help him.”

“NOT TO WORRY, UNDYNE, IT IS MY GOAL TO FIX THEIR RELATIONSHIP!” Papyrus always knew Undyne had a great sense of Justice, so he was filled with admiration that this Undyne was the same. 

Papyrus bid Undyne a final farewell before he followed after Sans. The two of them decided to walk back to Snowdin instead of taking a ride from the Riverperson. Their trek through Waterfall was peaceful, and Papyrus admired the minute changes in his surroundings. They passed a variety of different vegetations besides the common echo flower; there were beautiful plants that glowed faintly red and blue like crystals in a cavern. The marsh section with its luminescent mushrooms eventually came into view.

The two of them chatted easily, and Papyrus was somewhat distressed to learn that Sans worked multiple jobs. He’d originally worked a well-paying job at a casino in Hotland but it was recently closed so he picked up two other employments to make up for the loss in income. Undyne’s last words echoed in his head.

“BUT DOESN’T YOUR BROTHER MAKE A LOT AS A ROYAL GUARD? SURELY HE COULD HELP PAY THE BILLS,” Papyrus suggested.

“eh, it’s fine, don’t want chief to worry ‘bout stuff like that,” the short skeleton replied with a flippant shrug of his shoulders.

Silence reigned upon them. Papyrus’s soul churned with discomfort as he realized that his own brother probably worked multiple jobs to pay for their house. Sure, he cleaned and took care of the place but he didn’t remember ever having to pay a single piece of gold for it. Had his brother done the same as this Sans, keeping their financial situation hidden from him? 

The thought quickly extinguished the happy glow he’d gained from hanging out with Undyne. Guilt settled within him as he thought of all the times he’d called his brother lazy or slacking off his sentry duties when he could’ve been actually working. Was he a bad brother? He would have to apologize to Sans when he got back home. But what if he were stuck in this world forever, never getting a chance to apologize to his brother? 

“hey, you ok there, pap?”

The familiar baritone voice startled the tall skeleton out of his reverie. He hadn’t even realized he’d stopped walking and was staring at the luminescent mushrooms. He quickly pulled his face into a cheerful smile. 

“I’M ABSOLUTELY GREAT AS I ALWAYS AM!” He couldn’t burden this Sans with his issues. He was supposed to be helping this Sans, not the other way around!

The tall skeleton suddenly felt arms wrap around his middle, taking him completely by surprise. The familiarity of those arms, so much like his brother’s, had him sinking onto the wet ground. A wave of homesickness washed over him and, this time, his mask crumbled like clay. He couldn’t stop the orange tears from escaping his sockets from the thought of possibly never seeing his brother again, or from the rejection he’d felt by the Snowdin residents, or from everything he’d kept bottled up since finding himself in this strange version of the Underground. Even cooking with Undyne, while fun, was not exactly the same, as this Undyne barely knew him as the Papyrus he was. 

Papyrus felt phalanges slowly and rhythmically stroke up and down the back of his skull, just like how his brother had always done when he was upset or after he had the occasional nightmare.

“it’s ok, pap. it’s gonna be ok. you can always tell me what’s wrong.” 

The calming strokes continued, and Papyrus collapsed limply into Sans’s arms.

“is it… do you… want to go back home? to your timeline?” 

The tall skeleton suddenly straightened up and stared at his brother’s double. He gazed back at Papyrus with a combination of sadness and determination.

“I miss everyone back home. And there are some important things I never got to say, some apologizes I have to make, to my Sans.” Papyrus found it strange to use the term ‘my Sans’, as if his brother belonged to him. “What I mean is, my brother back home.”

Sans’s eye lights dimmed considerably, the corners of his sockets drooping ever so slightly. Papyrus thought he might have said something wrong. He was about to apologize when— 

“i’ll help you find a way back, i promise. i’ll ask alphys if he has any ideas, and we can work together to find a way for you to get back to your timeline.”

Butterflies fluttered in Papyrus’s nonexistent stomach, and he felt his spirits lift, warmth filling his soul. He gave Sans a tight, appreciative embrace.

“THANK YOU, SANS!”

The smaller skeleton sighed against his shoulders and murmured so softly he barely heard except for, “of course, pap… anything… you happy.”

In a rush of excitement and spur of the moment decision, the Royal Guard trainee stood up and twirled Sans around so that he was sitting on Papyrus’s shoulders. Papyrus carefully grabbed Sans’s dangling legs. He looked straight ahead, quickly memorizing all the luminescent mushrooms he still had to lit along the way to get out of this area of Waterfall.

“HAVE YOU EVER HAD A PIGGYBACK RIDE THROUGH WATERFALL?”

“wh-what? piggy back ride? no?” Sans sputtered in disbelief.

“THEN HOLD ON TIGHT, SANS, BECAUSE YOU’RE IN FOR A WILD RIDE! NEXT STOP, SNOWDIN! NYEH HEH HEH!”

Papyrus remembered his brother giving him piggyback rides back when he was still a babybones, and once he got older and taller than his brother, he’d started returning the favor. Though by that time, his brother didn’t find as much joy in them as Papyrus did. Since this Sans has never experienced one before, Papyrus would make sure to make it unforgettable. It was the least he could for Sans’s promise to help him get back home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And no, I did not make a mistake referring to Alphys as a 'he', as apparently, Alphys was originally gonna be a guy. Imagine that.


	5. Of Science, Unfunny Jokes and Threats, Oh My!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Exactly what the title says.

A week had passed since Papyrus first found himself in this strange version of the Underground. He still stayed at Sans and other him’s house, as neither brothers had yet to kick him out. Sans in particular seemed to enjoy his presence while his double had transitioned to simply tolerating him. Papyrus didn’t know when the friendly relationship between him and his other self had shifted or what caused it, but he didn’t plan on making it worse.

Boney Con was taking place for the next two days, and Papyrus found out that his double was going. During his counterpart’s absence, Papyrus planned to stay home, help clean the house and prepare his best friendship spaghetti. It was the least he could do for the two brothers’ hospitality and hopefully it’ll improve his relationship level with his other self. It was mid-afternoon, during Sans’s lunch break, that the two of them decided to meet Alphys. 

As the two of them made their way to Alphys’s lab by catching a ride from the Riverperson, Sans typed away furiously at his phone. Papyrus noticed that the corners of Sans’s mouth were tight, and his eye lights appeared as pinpricks. 

“IS SOMETHING WRONG, SANS?” Papyrus asked with concern. 

The short skeleton looked up from his typing and gave Papyrus a reassuring smile, “it’s no big deal. my br—, i mean, chief, wanted to meet with me to do some things but i told him i‘m busy.”

Papyrus frowned at the fact that Sans still referred to his brother as ‘chief’, even when out of his other self’s presence. Surely after all the improvements he’s seen in their relationship this wasn’t still occurring. 

“DOES OTHER ME STILL MAKE YOU CALL HIM ‘CHIEF’?” he asked.

Sans gave a shrug, “yeah, but it’s fine. it’s… it’s kinda like my nickname for him, heh.” 

Papyrus wanted to say that he shouldn’t have to be forced to call his own brother ‘chief’ but decided against it due to the last time he’d tried telling Sans something wasn’t right. Maybe he’d just speak to other him again. 

Their remaining journey to Alphys’s lab went better. The two of them had become much closer since their cooking session with Undyne and the piggyback ride. The smaller skeleton now spoke to Papyrus using direct eye contact, and the fondness in Sans’s gaze had Papyrus’s soul doing flips in his chest. 

They eventually got to the lab and knocked on the door. A short yellow lizard with glasses and wearing a lab coat greeted them. 

“Oh, h-hey Sans. H-how have you been?”

Papyrus was surprised to hear how deep Alphys’s voice was. It sounded like a young boy!

“A-a-are you the other P-p-papyrus?” 

“YES, IT IS I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS! YOU ARE ALPHYS?”

“Y-yep, t-that’s me. I-it’s nice to meet you.” Alphys wrung her, or his, hands fretfully from Papyrus’s confused expression. “I-i-s something on my face? O-oh, oh no!”

“NO, THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH YOUR FACE! I JUST, WELL, WHERE I COME FROM, YOU’RE NORMALLY… A GIRL,” Papyrus trailed off awkwardly. 

Both Sans and the lizard monster gaped at him before Alphys gave a low shriek of excitement. He quickly led them inside and closed the door. 

“That is so cool! Sans told me how you’re from another timeline?”

“I AM NOT SURE, THOUGH BEING A TIME TRAVELER WOULD BE QUITE COOL FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS! I AM NOT FROM AROUND HERE.” 

“it was only my theory. pap had been mentioning differences between his home and ours but there’s also a buncha similarities,” Sans explained.

Alphys and Sans continued to chat about multiple timeline theories, all of which went over his head. Papyrus peered around the lab as he walked with them. The lab had green walls and bluish-green square tiles. They passed an escalator that went up to the second floor, as well as a closed elevator door. Why would the scientist need both? And there wasn’t even a set of stairs! Beyond the elevator and a closed off area was a computer connected to a large screen console. 

“So Pap, y-you don’t know how you e-e-ended up here?” Alphys asked.

“NO, THE LAST I REMEMBER WAS…” Papyrus trailed off, as the image of his death flashed in his mind. He shuddered slightly, which he hoped Sans missed. “FIGHTING A BATTLE! I CALLED OUT TO SOMEONE, SOMETHING FLEW AT ME, AND I FOUND MYSELF HERE IN SNOWDIN FOREST.” 

Sans took the story with skepticism but Papyrus swore by it, not wanting to reveal that he’d actually _died_ before he somehow transported here. It wasn’t as if he lied; he simply left out some details. He knew it would worry both of them, especially Sans. The short skeleton muttered some more theories to Alphys, who nodded in agreement. The scientist then turned to Papyrus.

“D-do you have, uh, any electronic devices that you brought from your timeline?” 

The tall skeleton reached into his storage space, not expecting to find anything. He was surprised to pull out his cell phone. 

“you had that with you this whole time?” Sans asked. “does it work?”

“I DIDN’T EVEN REALIZE! HOW CARELESS OF ME!” Papyrus tried to turn it on but the screen stayed blank. “I DO NOT THINK IT WORKS.”

“Can I, um, see it? Maybe I can fix it or something…”

Papyrus handed the device to Alphys, who turned it around several times in his hand. He fiddled with the back covering until it popped opened, causing Papyrus to let out a distressed squawk.

“D-d-don’t worry! I-I’ll fix it!” the yellow lizard stuttered.

Sans took a glance at the device, “can you make it so it’ll pick up abnormal signals? maybe we can use it to find a weak spot in our timeline to send pap back to his.” 

It looked as if a light bulb went off in Alphys’s head, and his eyes twinkled like a child who’ve just gotten a stash of new toys. He was practically jumping with unbridled eagerness.

“I know just the thing! Make yourself at home. I’ll be back!”

The short lizard took Papyrus’s phone and went into the door that had been previously closed off. Sans motioned for Papyrus to sit in the chair facing the giant screen while the short skeleton took a seat adjacent to the computer. 

“so, uh, do ya have any questions for me? ‘bout what we’re tryna do?” Sans asked.

“WHAT IS ALPHYS GOING TO DO TO MY PHONE?”

“it’ll help us find a weak link in this timeline so you can get back to yours.” 

Papyrus still had a hard time grasping the concept. He had somehow ended up in a different timeline from his, one that had numerous difference, not only in events, but also monsters and places?

“think of each possible timeline as its own individual string. sometimes certain ones can get tangled with each other. if we use the device t’ find these tangles or a weak link within the thread, we can travel from one timeline to another.”

“WOWIE! THAT MAKES SO MUCH MORE SENSE! AND IS REALLY COOL! HAVE YOU ALWAYS STUDIED SCIENCE? MY BROTHER USED TO LOVE SCIENCE BEFORE... BEFORE HE EVENTUALLY LOST INTEREST IN IT. I STILL NEVER FIGURED OUT WHY.”

Papyrus vaguely remembered his brother, at one time, working in some sort of lab. He’d initially loved it, always excited to tell Papyrus of his day. But then one day, his brother came home trembling slightly and looking shell-shocked. When he’d asked Sans what had happened, his brother gave his usual smile and said he was fine. His brother never went back to the job. It was also around the time his nightmares began. Now, after considering the memory, Papyrus wished he’d asked more because clearly something terrible must have happened. How could he have been so blind at that time?

“hey, pap, you ok there?” Sans’s voice cut into his thoughts. 

“I HAVE NEVER BEEN BETTER!” Papyrus answered and gave Sans a radiant smile. Sans looked dubious but didn’t press any further. 

The two fell briefly silent before Sans asked, “pap, do you… do you wanna come to my comedy show at the mtt resort? it’s later this evening.” Sans’s voice sounded hesitant, as if expecting a rejection. “it’s ok if you have something else planned.”

“I WOULD LOVE TO GO!”

There was nothing in the world that would’ve had Papyrus declining the offer but the pure happiness on Sans’s face had his own soul throbbing with joy. Even if he had to sit through an hour of terrible puns, he would do it to see that expression on Sans’s face.

Nearly a full hour went by, after which Papyrus and Sans almost thought to break into the secret backroom, before Alphys finally came back out and handed the cellphone back to Papyrus. It had been upgraded, having a much sleeker look with a big screen and a whole new set of interesting buttons. The scientist also handed a much smaller device to Sans, explaining that it was the signal locator. It had the capabilities of detecting abnormal signals given off in a particular area. Alphys had tried adding that capability onto Papyrus’s phone but it was too much for the communication device.

“WOWIE! THANK YOU SO MUCH, ALPHYS! IF YOU NEED ANY ASSISTANCE FROM THE GREAT PAPYRUS IN THE FUTURE, I’LL BE SURE TO HELP!”

The short lizard flushed pink and stammered, “I-i-it’s nothing. W-we can make new scientific discoveries with this!”

Alphys gave a brief demonstration of all the phone’s new functions. Papyrus added Sans, Alphys and even Undyne’s numbers. It turned out Alphys was good friends with the Royal Guard captain and had her number. Of course Papyrus had to have it as well so that he could set up future cooking and sparring dates with the fish captain. 

Papyrus and his brother’s double were about to leave when Alphys timidly suggested that they watch anime together. Papyrus was able to, once again, convince Sans to stay past his break time. Alphys immediately recommended they watch the greatest anime of all time, _Mew Mew Kissy Cutie_. The lizard scientist conversed excitedly throughout the episode, pointing out her favorite scenes. The anime was fairly good, though certain parts were childish. Papyrus kept the childish comments to himself as, going by the huge pink poster of the main character on Alphys’s wall, saying any major criticism may upset the yellow lizard.

Alphys insisted they stay for a few more episodes. Papyrus found himself enjoying the later episodes a lot more than the first two. Sans made several mood disrupting puns, which had Alphys glaring at him with killing intent. Papyrus almost feared that Alphys was going to have Sans thrown out if he’d continued. Thankfully, he eventually stopped. After they’d completed the first arc, they had to leave so they wouldn’t be late for the comedy show. 

“I-it was nice meeting you, Pap. M-maybe next time, w-we can watch a different anime.”

Papyrus beamed at Alphys and answered, “OF COURSE! WE SHALL MEET AGAIN!”

The two skeletons took their leave and soon arrived at the MTT restaurant with the stage. Papyrus took his seat at a two-person table in the back corner of the room, while Sans gave him a reassuring smile and went backstage. Pride blossomed within his chest at seeing all the different monsters trickling into the room to watch Sans’s show. He was nearly bouncing out of his seat in anticipation. Minutes before the show was about to start, an orange lizard monster wearing a red sweater asked if he could sit at the table. Of course he allowed it, as he was always an accommodating skeleton.

The chattering dropped off as the restaurant darkened. Only the center spotlight on stage was lit. Drumrolls rumbled, and the spotlight circled around the stage. After several minutes, enough where some of the chattering picked up again, Sans finally appeared on the center of the stage almost in a blink of an eye. Papyrus cheered and waved enthusiastically at Sans, who gave him a quick wink in response.

“sorry for the lateness guys, i had to _ketchup_ due to all the hotland traffic.”

Several people laughed from the audience but many groaned, though all of them were light-hearted. Papyrus was one of them.

“gee, so few laughs from a _punny_ guy like me?” Sans commented lightly. “alright, so here’s a good one.” Sans picked up the mic from its stand and walked across the stage as he continued, “a guy tells me i’m outta shape and i respond back, ‘i am in shape. round is a shape, isn’t it?”

The short skeleton ended the joke with a wink, and laughter erupted from the audience. Papyrus gave his signature laugh, though it was half-hearted. He didn’t find it all that funny and found it more rude that anyone would call Sans ‘out of shape’. 

“so then he tells me to go on a diet and i say ‘i’m on a new seafood diet. if i see food, i eat it’.” 

More boisterous laughter burst forth from the audience, and Sans’s permanent grin grew wider. 

“i’m at this party telling off my usual punny jokes. people there say that i’m pretty funny but that’s cause they know i’m the biggest joke there.”

The lizard in the red sweater pounded away at the table, tears of mirth in his eyes. He muttered about how these were much funnier than the puns. Papyrus wanted to vehemently disagree but his protests were drowned out by the loud laughter.

A deep sense of sadness flooded Papyrus’s soul despite, or maybe at, hearing all the guffaws and chuckles coming from all the monsters around him. At this obvious of a level, even his optimistic mind couldn’t misconstrue these jokes as anything other than self-deprecating. Surely Sans didn’t find these jokes to be funnier than his usual skeleton puns. 

But as the night wore on and jokes after jokes came out from the comedian’s mouth, Papyrus grew more and more upset. At one point, he had to step outside to prevent himself from interrupting Sans’s next joke. It didn’t help that the audience reacted so positively to them. Papyrus didn’t understand how anyone could laugh so heartily at someone else’s expense.

When the tall skeleton finally slipped back inside, after the laughter had died down, Sans was spouting off knock knock jokes. A few chuckles echoed in the restaurant, but the overall reception was lukewarm. A few more puns later, and Sans began his last joke. The short skeleton used his magic to levitate a trash can onto the stage.

“what did the skeleton say to the trash can?” Sans began, standing next to the plastic container. “just cause i’m trash doesn’t mean i can’t do great things. It’s called garbage can, not garbage cannot.”

Another round of roaring laughter erupted from the audience. Sans gave a final wink, thanked everyone who came, and disappeared from the stage. Papyrus was still trying to figure out how Sans had vanished when the short skeleton suddenly appeared behind him. The orange lizard monster had already left so only Papyrus was caught off guard. 

“so what d’ya think pap? did i _tickle your funny bone_?” Sans grinned widely, as he waggled his left bone brow at Papyrus. 

“WELL, SANS, UM, IF YOU REALLY WANT MY TRUE OPINION, AND THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS NOT ONE TO LIE,” the Royal Guard trainee rambled, trying to delay voicing his opinion. Though by the way Sans’s sockets and smile drooped, he suspected Sans already knew his thoughts. “I didn’t find it all that funny.”

There was a long beat of silence. 

“oh.” 

The stricken tone of Sans’s voice had Papyrus immediately responding, “I DIDN’T MEAN IT WAS BAD! I JUST… DIDN’T FIND THE JOKES AS FUNNY AS EVERYONE ELSE!”

Sans slumped and turned his head downwards to stare at the ground, his white eye lights dim and trembling slightly. Papyrus’s soul constricted painfully at the complete change in Sans’s previously excited demeanor. He hadn’t meant to make his brother’s double feel bad! Papyrus glanced down at Sans. The absolutely devastated look on his face sent regret through him. He gingerly placed a hand on Sans’s shoulder. 

“I’M SORRY, SANS, I MEANT TO SAY—”

“n-no, it’s fine,” Sans interrupted, pulling away from him. “it’s as c-chief’s said. ‘m just not fit _tibia_ comedian, heh. sorry i made you—”

Papyrus couldn’t bare to listen any further. 

“NO SANS! YOU ARE FUNNY BUT I DIDN’T LIKE HOW ALL YOUR JOKES MADE EVERYONE LAUGH AT YOUR EXPENSE! YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE TO MAKE FUN OF YOURSELF!”

“b-but more people laughed at those, and… and makin’ others laugh, brightening someone’s day… m-makes me feel better. b-besides, they always say to use what you know… and... and that’s what i do.” Sans seemed to shrink into himself after those words. The sight had Papyrus’s soul crying out in distress.

He swiftly crouched down to Sans’s height and wrapped his arms tightly around the small skeleton in a warm embrace. Papyrus felt Sans tense against him.

“THEN IGNORE THOSE OTHER MONSTERS! IF THEY DON’T LIKE YOUR COOLEST, MOST _BONE-CHILLING_ PUNS, THEN THOSE MONSTERS HAVE TERRIBLE TASTE! I, FOR ONE, FIND YOUR PUNS AND KNOCK KNOCK JOKES ABSOLUTELY _TICKLING MY FUNNY BONE_!”

Papyrus broke the hug to look at Sans with adoration in his eyes and sent a pulse of his magic into Sans’s soul, to reassure Sans that he meant every single word he’d said. 

“NEXT TIME WHEN YOU PERFORM HERE, WE WILL WORK TOGETHER TO COME UP WITH THE GREATEST JOKES THAT’LL MAKE EVERYONE ROLL ON THE FLOOR WITH LAUGHTER!”

Sans’s grin widened, and he returned Papyrus’s hug. 

“thanks, pap, you’re the coolest.” 

“YOU ARE VERY COOL YOURSELF, SANS, THE SECOND COOLEST AFTER THE GREAT PAPYRUS! AND DON’T LET ANYONE TELL YOU OTHERWISE!”

Sans chuckled softly, and the two began their trek back home. Papyrus felt his own spirits lift as his brother’s double spewed out bone pun after bone pun, even throwing in a couple of knock knock jokes. He found these to be one-hundred percent more humerus (NYEH HEH HEH!) than anything he’d heard from the comedy show.

The house was completely dark when the two skeletons got home. Sans bid Papyrus a good-night as he shuffled upstairs into his room. Papyrus laid down on the couch, tossing and turning for what felt like hours. He finally realized why he had so much difficulty falling asleep; back home he’d always fallen asleep from listening to his brother’s bedtime stories. 

The tall skeleton was expecting another long night, and was even about to flick on the TV, when he heard faint footsteps. He turned around and saw Sans coming down the stairs.

“whoa, pap, you still up?” Concern etched on his features.

Papyrus nodded, “BACK HOME, MY BROTHER WOULD READ FLUFFY BUNNY TO GET ME TO FALL ASLEEP.”

“fluffy bunny, eh? hold up, i think we may have that.”

Papyrus heard Sans rush upstairs, followed immediately by shuffling. Not a minute later, Sans came down with a brand-new copy of _Fluffy Bunny_ in his hand and sat onto the couch next to Papyrus

“bought this for chief when he was a babybones but he never liked it. want me to read it to ya?”

“GASP! I WOULD LOVE IT!” 

Papyrus almost cried with happiness as he listened to Sans’s soft, baritone voice narrate the story. The steady rumble of his voice, exactly the same as his own Sans’s, reminded him of home. He fleetingly thought in the back of his mind that if he failed to find a way back, maybe living in this timeline wouldn’t be so bad. Sleep soon overtook him. 

Papyrus was rudely awoken the next morning by a shrill voice snarling, “GET UP YOU USELESS SACK OF GARBAGE! YOU’RE GOING TO BE LATE FOR WORK!”

He felt something hard and bony shift frantically against his ribs and let out a pained groaned.

“s-s-sorry.”

“I DON’T WANT TO HEAR YOUR EXCUSES! JUST GET OUT!”

Papyrus blinked awake and saw Sans scrambling to untangle his arms from Papyrus’s own. They must’ve both fallen asleep on the couch. Beads of sweat trailed down the small skeleton’s head and his eye lights were constricted with fear. Without another word, Sans disappeared from the house. 

“And you!” the other Papyrus suddenly turned and glared venomously at him. “You better stay away from _my_ brother!”

A chill ran down Papyrus’s spine at the possessiveness in his counterpart’s tone. He stared at the fedora-wearing skeleton in alarm, who pointed a furious finger at the door.

“You are no longer welcomed here! Pack up your things and leave! I want you out by this afternoon! If I see you again with my brother, I’ll make sure to get you arrested!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be posting excerpts from the art book my tumblr: knowmeknot101.tumblr.com


	6. A Cave Full of Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus tries to find a way to get into contact with Sans, along with some help from Undyne. They eventually meet, and Sans takes him to a place that leaves him breathless.

Papyrus was at a loss of what to do after he got kicked out of other him’s house. He didn’t even get a chance to say anything to Sans. The fearful look that had been on the small skeleton’s face before he’d left had not gone unnoticed by him. He couldn’t help but worry for Sans’s well-being, especially after hearing the possessiveness in his counterpart’s voice. He could understand if his other self was feeling jealous of his spending so much time with Sans, as the royal guard trainee had felt that way before, but Papyrus would never act on his jealousy and threaten another monster.

Papyrus wandered throughout Snowdin before he stepped in front of the Inn. An idea popped into his head, and he stepped inside. If he stayed at the Inn, then he could be close to Sans and keep a socket on him. Despite his other self’s warning, Papyrus’s own protective instincts prevented him from completely abandoning Sans without saying a final word or goodbye, especially if other him still treated Sans poorly.

As Papyrus stepped inside the Inn, he noticed a bear in an orange jacket and the rabbit girl, who was always seen walking Cinnamon, chatting in the lobby. Not usually one to eavesdrop, Papyrus greeted the rabbit Innkeeper and asked if a room was available. Disappointment flooded him when he heard that the Inn was completely booked until next week. Papyrus thanked the rabbit monster and was almost out the door when he caught his name mentioned in the rabbit girl and bear’s conversation.

“That Papyrus is such an obnoxious and arrogant jerk! Just the other day he spent fifteen minutes lecturing me on how pointless it was to waste my time walking Cinnamon, my own brother! Can you believe the nerve of him?” the rabbit girl complained.

“Ah, yes, he is quite disruptive, with all his pretentious opinions about everyone and everything. If I became mayor of this town, I would definitely have him evicted from here,” the Politics Bear responded. 

“Hmph, if you ask me, it’s all his brother’s fault. What’s his name, Stan or something?”

“Sans, I believe.” 

The rabbit girl gave a flippant huff and continued, “Either way, that brother of his should’ve raised him better!”

A burst of indignant anger shot through Papyrus at the comment, feeling the urge to interrupt and vouch on behalf of Sans. There was no way his brother’s counterpart was a bad brother, given everything he’s seen thus far. If anything, it was the other way around!

“Now, now, that’s not fair to Sans,” Politics Bear placated. “Papyrus is unpleasant towards everyone but especially his brother. Most of the residents ignore it.”

“Hm, whatever,” rabbit girl said dismissively. “Ma always told me to stay out of other monsters’ family drama. Anyways, did you hear about what happened to the Slime Family up in North Snowdin?”

At that point of the conversation, Papyrus had heard enough and left. He paced around town, trying to come up with a way to see Sans. The conversation he’d just overheard worried him greatly. He knew and saw that other him didn’t treat his brother all that well but had it been worse than he’s seen? He thought back to all the times he’s seen the two brothers interact with each other, all the times other Papyrus neglected or insulted Sans. How could he have been so blind? 

Guilt surge through him, and his mind scrambled to come up with a plan to help Sans. He had to find Sans and speak with him. Papyrus searched all the sentry stations in the Snowdin area but found no signs of Sans. Could he be back home? 

As Papyrus strolled through Snowdin Forest, mulling over Sans’s whereabouts, a lightbulb went off in his head. Although he couldn’t meet up with Sans, his other self never said anything about communicating with him. Besides, it wasn’t as if a simple threat was going to stop the Great Papyrus.

The royal guard trainee dialed Sans’s number on his phone and waited for a response. No one answered. Not one to give up easily, Papyrus bought some pens and paper from the Store and scribbled a short note to Sans, asking if he was doing well and to set up a meeting. After signing the letter with his awesome font, he placed it into Sans’s mailbox. Since this Sans actually checked his mail, unlike his own brother, hopefully this letter would reach the short monster.

The homely rabbit Shopkeeper was thankfully kind enough to allow Papyrus to stay over a few nights in the spare room of her shop. There was even a makeshift bed and everything. He tossed and turned, wishing to hear Sans’s voice reading Fluffy Bunny. He eventually fell into a restful sleep. 

The following day when Papyrus snuck back to the house and peeked in Sans’s mailbox, he was disappointed to find it empty. Once again, Papyrus scouted out all of Sans’s usual sentry stations but never saw him. Papyrus wrote a letter to Sans again and decided to hide close to the house in a self-created snowpuff. 

Soon after he placed the letter in the mailbox, his other self came out of the house, took the letter and skimmed it before ripping it into several pieces. Papyrus frowned deeply at the sight, and an anger that which he’s never felt before seeped into his soul. He continued to stay hidden, ignoring the heavy chill in his bones, until he finally saw Sans appear outside the house. 

Deep-seated exhaustion and melancholy marred the small skeleton’s face, the sight compelling Papyrus to run up to his brother’s double and take him away to somewhere that would make him genuinely smile. He froze as his other self’s tall figure came out of the house, glaring at Sans.

“You’re five minutes late!” 

Sans flinched at the harsh snarl in his brother’s tone and mumbled back softly, “so-sorry, chief, i got held up at work.”

“Fine, just get in here!” other Papyrus ordered. He pulled Sans inside and slammed the door shut.

Papyrus sprang out of his hiding spot, scattering snow everywhere, and almost knocked down the door of the house before stopping himself. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t barge in there as there was no doubt that he would get in trouble. The best plan of action was to report what he’d seen to Undyne. She’ll have a better idea how to approach this horrible situation. 

He was so disappointed in his other self. Was he wrong to assume that other him could improve his behavior? How could another version _of him_ act this way? 

Papyrus dialed Undyne’s number and waited for her to answer. It rang four times before she finally responded.

“Yo! Who’s this and how did you get my number?! If you’re a stalker, I’ll suplex you into a boulder!”

“HELLO, UNDYNE, IT IS ME, PAP! ALPHYS GAVE ME YOUR NUMBER!”

“Whoa, hey Pap! You met up with Alphys? Man, isn’t he the greatest?”

“INDEED HE WAS COOL! HE UPGRADED MY PHONE!”

“Yep, that’s Alphys alright. Anyways, do ya need something? Wanna meet up and spar? Or cook?”

Excitement flooded him at the thought of sparring with Undyne, but he quickly brushed the thought aside. He had a much more important matter to address.

“I NEED TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT SANS… AND HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS BROTHER.” 

There was a pregnant pause. Undyne must have sensed the distress in Papyrus’s tone as she replied seriously, “Meet me back at my place.”

It wasn’t long before Papyrus arrived at Undyne’s house, who was waiting for him in front of her house. She gave him a grin full of teeth when she spotted him.

“Hey, Pap! You wanna have a quick spar or get straight to the point?”

As much as Papyrus would’ve loved to have a quick training session with Undyne, especially after their last exciting match, his worry over Sans triumphed. 

“UNDYNE! I KNOW I’VE PROMISED TO HELP THE TWO BROTHERS BUT PERHAPS MY JUDGMENT OF OTHER ME HAS… NOT BEEN THE BEST. “ Papyrus paced frantically in front of the captain of the Royal Guard, his concern making him restless. “OTHER PAPYRUS KICKED ME OUT OF HIS HOUSE AND TOLD ME TO STAY AWAY FROM SANS!”

“What?! That slimy bastard!” Undyne exclaimed furiously, her one eye narrowed into a glare.

“SANS ISN’T PICKING UP HIS PHONE! AND I TRIED TO COMMUNICATE WITH HIM THROUGH LETTERS BUT OTHER ME INTERCEPTED THEM BEFORE IT REACHED SANS. I ALSO SAW OTHER PAPYRUS YELLING AT SANS JUST BECAUSE HE CAME HOME LATE FROM WORK! I’M WORRIED ABOUT HIM!” Papyrus wrung his gloved hands together fretfully. “I WANT TO DO MORE TO HELP!”

The furious expression on Undyne’s face immediately dissipated. She frowned and shook her head regretfully. 

“I know Jerkwad doesn’t treat Sans right, but unfortunately, I can’t legally do anything against him, like arrest him, without proof.”

Papyrus didn’t like the sound of this but asked anyway, “Proof? What sort of proof?”

Undyne shrugged and glanced away, expression filled with sympathy. “Evidence of abuse or some sort of confession from Sans. If Sans actually admitted to it, then we’d have a different case.”

Papyrus deflated from the captain’s words, doubting that Sans would confess. His best bet was to find a way to speak to Sans privately. Undyne provided him with a list of Sans’s sentry stations, including the ones in Waterfall. He would add these to his rounds tomorrow. It didn’t stop him from listlessly pacing around Undyne’s house. 

Undyne noticed the tall skeleton’s trepidation and decided to do some fun activities together to pass the time. Papyrus was surprised to discover that this Undyne not only enjoyed passionate cooking and battle but also fashion and singing. He became completely enraptured when she performed a song that she had written. She played the piano and sang at the same time. It was truly amazing, and it lifted his mood tremendously to have such a talented friend. 

The two friends eventually called it a night. Undyne welcomed Papyrus to stay over due to his housing situation. He thanked her profusely throughout the evening until the fish monster threatened to suplex him if he didn’t stop. For the first time since arriving in this timeline, Papyrus fell asleep without the need of his brother’s bedtime stories. 

The following day, Papyrus continued his daily rounds to find Sans. Snowdin was a bust once again but he still had Waterfall to check through this time. He had just passed the statue that got rained on when he spotted a strange, ghostly tall figure. The ghost disappeared as soon as he approached near it, perplexing the Royal Guard trainee. 

Papyrus kept going, marching through the marsh. He came upon an area with a lone telescope, one that was similar to the telescope his brother had back home. He suddenly froze as he heard soft footsteps coming towards him. In a split moment decision, he hid in the dark hallway on his right, just before the telescope. His soul vibrated with relief and happiness as he saw Sans’s small stature wandering through the area, Alphys’s sensor device held in his outstretched left hand. 

“AH HA! I HAVE FINALLY FOUND YOU, SANS!” Papyrus exclaimed, as he sprang out from his hiding place. 

Said skeleton almost jumped in his spot, sockets wide and eye lights shrunken into pinpricks.

“pap?” The uneasiness in Sans’s voice caught Papyrus off guard. “i… i…”

Papyrus sensed a ripple in Sans’s magic, and based off Sans’s stance, he knew the short skeleton was about to shortcut out of here. Papyrus seized Sans’s arm as his brother’s double disappeared. Everything went pitch black, and the world spun around him. He nearly let go when a bony hand grabbed him tightly. The brisk Snowdin air abruptly hit his face. He fell to his knees as a wave of dizziness washed over him. 

“pap, are you ok?” Sans’s worried voice called out to him. He felt small hands rub soothing circles in his back. “wh-why did you do that? y-you could have… gotten lost in the v-void!”

The world around him finally stopped spinning, and he beamed brightly at Sans. “BECAUSE I KNEW YOU WOULD NEVER LET ME GO!”

Sans pulled his hands away and stared at the ground. Papyrus surveyed his surroundings briefly and noted that they were in front of the ice cave in Snowdin Forest. He looked back at Sans and found the skeleton still peering intently at the ground, a profound sadness in his expression.

“SANS, HAS EVERYTHING BEEN ALRIGHT? I DIDN’T MEAN TO LEAVE YOU SO SOON. I’VE BEEN LOOKING EVERYWHERE FOR YOU AND EVEN SENT YOU LETTERS! YOUR BR—”

Papyrus fell silent. He didn’t know if now was a good idea to mention Sans’s brother, though he would have to bring it up eventually. 

“y-you don’t h-hate me?” Sans whispered quietly; Papyrus just barely heard it. Papyrus’s soul gave a painful pulse.

“WHAT? OF COURSE NOT! I COULD NEVER HATE YOU, SANS! WHY WOULD YOU EVER THINK THAT?!”

Sans winced and shrunk into himself. Guilt immediately flooded Papyrus’s soul. Why did he say it like that? He crouched down and placed a comforting hand on the short monster’s shoulder. 

“I’m sorry,” he apologized softly. “It’s just that you’re an amazing monster, Sans, you truly are, and I’m upset that you don’t see it.”

The short monster didn’t reply for a long time. So long that Papyrus was going to add on something more encouraging, but Sans suddenly looked up at him with a gleam in his eye lights.

“hey, pap, there’s this place i’ve always wanted t’ show you. will you come with me?”

Papyrus’s soul pounded frantically against his chest. “OF COURSE! I’LL BE HAPPY TO GO! ECSTATIC IN FACT!”

“heh, bet you’re… _jumpin’ outta your bones_ in excitement,” Sans responded cheekily. 

Papyrus felt an immediate need to scoop Sans into his arms but restrained himself. Instead, he gave his false yelp of annoyance at the pun, which had the short monster chuckling.

“it’s inside this cave. have you ever been in here before?” Sans took a few steps inside, and Papyrus followed after him.

“ONLY THE BEGINNING PARTS OF IT.”

“aw, then you haven’t seen the best part. c’mon.”

Sans held out his hand, blue dusting his cheeks. The Royal Guard trainee promptly grabbed it, his gloved hand completely engulfing Sans’s much smaller one. The two of them walked through the first chamber with all the illustrations along the walls. Those he’d already seen but still found beautiful nevertheless. They passed a worn stage along with various snow sculptures of monsters in the next section. One crevice even housed a temmie, who jauntily greeted them. They returned the temmie’s greeting.

The two skeletons eventually reached a depth within the cavern that casted an eerie blue glow throughout their surroundings. It reminded Papyrus almost of the echoflowers in the marshy section of Waterfall. Stalactites hung from the ceiling like icicles while thick stalagmites grew from the ground like pillars. 

Sans finally stopped at a fork, one direction leading to complete darkness. With their hands still held together, the short skeleton turned to Papyrus with a gentle smile.

“can you close your eyes for me, pap? i want this to be a surprise for you. a-and… as a way to thank you... for everything.”

Papyrus nodded his head fervently, his soul threatening to burst with anticipation. He closed his eyes and allowed Sans to lead him the rest of the way. Papyrus wanted to open his eyes so badly but he held himself. He couldn’t disappoint Sans! And he loved surprises! After what felt like hours, Sans finally stopped him.

“you can look now, pap.” 

Papyrus slowly opened his sockets and felt his breath suddenly leave him. His jaw fell open at the sight, turning his head all around him. In the high ceilings of the cave above them, spaced out between the pitch darkness, were tiny specks of golden light. The light danced off the icy walls of the cave and twinkled above them like stars. It was like the wishing room in Waterfall back home. 

“those are fireflies,” Sans explained. “they’re bugs that produce their own light. don’t know why they decided to make a home here but it makes for a great view doesn’t it?”

The tall skeleton found himself speechless and simply sat down on the ground and gazed above him. Sans took a seat next to him, leaning hesitantly against his side. Papyrus felt heat rise to his cheek, and he wrapped an arm around Sans. 

“W-WOWIE, SANS, THIS IS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!” Papyrus had never seen something so wondrous, so magical, as this. Not even the wishing room compares to the beauty of this.

A wet sniffling suddenly escaped from the small skeleton next to him. Papyrus peered down and, to his great distress, saw blue tears dribbling down the corners of Sans’s sockets. 

“SANS, WHAT’S WRONG! ARE YOU HURT? DO YOU—?”

Sans shook his head and smiled brightly at him. 

“i’ve never felt so happy... i’m so happy to be able to show this to you. i usually come here when i’m feelin’ down since it reminds me of stars. but i’ve always wanted to come here with someone...” Sans paused, his sockets drooping slightly. “this may, uh, sound embarrassing but i’ve… i’ve dreamt of bringing my bro here but he was never interested.”

A bottomless wave of sadness and anger bubbled worth within Papyrus. 

“but now i think… i think it’s more worth it to bring you here, pap. you… you deserve the best for being the, heh, coolest monster i’ve met.” 

Papyrus breath hitched at Sans’s words and felt as if the fireflies were fluttering within his ribcage and not the cavern above them. He seized Sans in a tight embrace, causing the short monster to let out a gasp of surprise.

“THANK YOU, THAT MEANS A LOT TO ME!” Papyrus felt his own sockets fill with tears. “AND DON’T SELL YOURSELF _SHORT_ , NYEH HEH! YOU ARE THE COOLEST AS WELL!”

Papyrus listened fondly as Sans began to gush about how he’s always wanted to see the stars on the surface. He couldn’t help but be reminded of his own brother. This Sans really wasn’t all that different from him. His brother had always told him tales of how humans use stars to make wishes. 

He caught one of the fireflies zoom across the ceiling like a shooting stars. At that moment, Papyrus made a wish, a wish to be together with this Sans. Maybe he could bring this Sans back home with him. They were technically brothers, after all, even if not directly related. And he was sure his own brother wouldn’t mind.

These thoughts eventually brought him to the fedora Papyrus and how Sans had acted earlier. How could Sans believe that he hated him after all they’ve done together? Unless other Papyrus lied about that to Sans? It was difficult for him to believe but other him _did_ destroy his letters to Sans. He simply needed some sort of confirmation.

“SANS… WAS IT YOUR BROTHER WHO TOLD YOU THAT I HATED YOU?”

Sans’s sockets widened at the question, and glanced away. The length of time it took for Sans to deny the accusation was confirmation enough for Papyrus, whose soul flared with unbridled rage. 

“i-i-it’s nothing you should be worrying ‘bout, pap.”

“NO! IT IS NOT RIGHT FOR HIM TO TREAT YOU LIKE THIS!” Papyrus gently lifted Sans’s chin to look directly at him. “IF HE CONTINUES TO BEHAVE THIS WAY, THEN THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL BECOME YOUR AWESOME AND COOL BROTHER! THAT IS, IF YOU’LL ALLOW ME!”

Sans was flabbergasted by the question and responded incredulously, “pap, y-you mean it?” Tears beaded the corner of his sockets, and his eye lights trembled.

“YES, I MEAN IT! I PROMISE IT EVEN!” Papyrus declared. “SANS, WILL YOU ALLOW ME TO BE THE BROTHER THAT YOU DESERVE?”

At a loss for words, the short skeleton simply nodded, a few tears trailing down his face. Papyrus got up to sit behind Sans and pulled the small monster into his arms. He held Sans close to his chest, resting his head gently against Sans’s left shoulder, as the two of them continued to watch the flickering fireflies dance above them. He was disheartened to have misjudged his counterpart, that his other self had refused to change. Next time they meet, he would give the other Papyrus a stern lecturing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're heading towards the final stretch, guys. I'm so excited to write the next few chapters as I've been anticipating them since the start of this fic. Please stay tuned for the ice cave from the art book on my tumblr. It's too bad Toby couldn't find a way to fit it into the final game as it sounded wonderful!


	7. Illness Does Not Make a Monster Nicer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Proto-Papyrus gets sick and Sans enlists some help from Pap. A long-awaited confrontation occurs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter was getting too long so I had to split it with the next one. This story will have 11 total chapters. Don't worry, remaining plot and the ending are still the same.

Papyrus’s soul swelled as he and Sans made their slow trek back out of the cave. The small skeleton had a rare, genuine smile on his face as the two chatted about the most mundane of topics. Topics such as the ice in the caves, new knock knock jokes that Sans had come up with and that they should come back here more often. The reverence that Sans displayed towards him had his soul pounding heavily against his chest. 

They had just stepped out of the cave when Sans’s phone went off. The happy expression on his features quickly morphed into apprehension. Papyrus already knew who was on the other line.

“h-hey, sans here.” Papyrus could hear the fear in Sans’s tone.

“WHERE ARE YOU?! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE HOME HOURS AGO! I EXPECT YOU HOME WITHIN TEN MINUTES, NO EXCUSES!”

Sans flinched at the furious tone and timidly replied back, “i-i-i’ll be there soon.” The call ended with a click.

Rage and protective instinct burst within him like a shaken can of soda. He took several deep breaths to calm down. He knew the topic he was about to breach was a sensitive one for Sans but he could hold back no longer.

“SANS,” Papyrus began. “YOU AND YOUR BROTHER ARE BOTH ADULTS, CORRECT?”

Sans nodded, looking bemused.

“AND YOUR BROTHER CAN FINANCIALLY SUPPORT HIMSELF SINCE HE WORKS AS A ROYAL GUARD?”

“yea.” Papyrus spotted the comprehension dawning on Sans’s face, and the tightening of his grin. “i-i know where you’re tryna go with this pap, and i… i can’t agree to it.”

“BUT WHY? ASK YOURSELF THIS, SANS, ARE YOU TRULY HAPPY LIVING WITH YOUR BROTHER?”

Sans’s sockets widened at the question, as if he’d never even considered the notion. It took a long time for him to answer, so long that Papyrus thought he was going to run away before answering.

“i-it… it doesn’t matter whether i’m happy or not.” Sans turned away from Papyrus to stare regretfully at the ground. “t-this… this is my way of making up to him… making up for what i did to him in the past.”

Papyrus heard a faint rattling coming from Sans. 

“Sans,” he said softly. He was interrupted before he could continue.

“i’ve got t’ get back.” Sans gazed up and gave Papyrus a wistful smile, one that had his soul aching, “thanks for watchin' the fireflies with me and… and for being a cool brother. i had a lot of fun today.”

The small skeleton disappeared before Papyrus could say a word. He stood and grasped at the air where Sans had just been standing. He couldn’t believe he’d allowed Sans to get away from him without doing anything to help his situation. Why did this new brother of his have to be so stubborn with anything pertaining to the other Papyrus? Despite his grievances, he knew his own brother would’ve done the same. 

Papyrus needed someone to talk to, someone to vent to. He quickly made his way back to Waterfall and was grateful to find Undyne home from work. He told everything that had occurred to the fish captain, and she listened like any best friend would. She even added her own brash, blunt commentary, and absolutely went off on the other Papyrus when he’d told her of Sans’s phone call. 

“NGAAAAAAHHHH! THAT NO GOOD PUNK!” Undyne roared. “Next time I catch him doing something cowardly or wrong, I’ll make sure he gets properly punished! It’s only too bad that stubborn pile of bones won’t admit to anything!” 

Papyrus felt disheartened and asked if Undyne knew anything more about the brothers’ history before other Papyrus had joined the Royal Guards. Unfortunately, she didn’t, saying how she couldn’t remember. It was strangely similar to his own situation back home. He still remember how the Shopkeeper told everyone that he and his brother simply “appeared one day in Snowdin.” It was so very strange.

To lighten up Papyrus’s mood, Undyne suggested that they have a quick spar. The two friends traded blows back and forth, spears and bones flying in the air. It was a close match but Undyne eventually had the tip of her spear at his chest, and Papyrus conceded his loss. It did end up making him feel better. 

Papyrus tossed and turned, trying to come up with a solution to help Sans. He eventually drifted to sleep to images of a cave full of fireflies.

The next morning, Papyrus searched through Waterfall to find anything bizarre or unusual. He only ended up finding a strange gray monster who resembled Monster Kid, who disappeared as soon as he’d approached the monster. He was on his way to Snowdin when his phone rang. His heart pounded when he saw ‘Sans’ on his caller ID.

“SANS! HOW ARE—”

“pap! i need your help.” Papyrus’s soul seized at the urgency in Sans’s tone. “my br—, c-chief came down with somethin’ and…” 

“I’LL BE RIGHT THERE! HOLD ON!”

Papyrus sprinted as fast as he could until he found the Riverperson. He told them, politely, to please hurry to Snowdin. They arrived at the snowy town in record time. Just as he scrambled to get off the dog boat, a voice called out to him.

“Sometimes loss can bring greater things.”

Papyrus didn’t understand what that riddle meant but he thanked the Riverperson nevertheless. He quickly made his way to “his house” and pounded against the door. A very harried and exhausted Sans greeted him. 

“WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP?” 

Sans led Papyrus into his other self’s room and found his doppelganger lying in his bed, covered up to his neck by a thick blanket. His bones were ashen instead of its usual white. His fedora had been removed and placed by the bedside. Beads of sweat poured from his forehead, which had a wet cloth on top of it.

“h-he wouldn’t tell me how he got this. y’know how skeleton monsters don’t usually get sick. h-he just collapsed yesterday a-after i came home.”

Papyrus’s soul clenched painfully at the fatigue and sadness in the smaller monster’s tone. He placed a kind hand on Sans’s shoulder, “IT’S FINE. I’LL HELP IN WHATEVER WAY I CAN!”

Sans gave him a relieved smile and replied back, “sorry to bother you like this. ‘m gonna head to the store and pick up some medicine that the doc recommended. can ya watch over him for a bit?” 

Once Sans was gone, Papyrus made sure his counterpart was comfortable and as well as he could be. The tall skeleton went to kitchen to keep himself busy. Should he make spaghetti? Usually soup was best for illnesses, wasn’t it? 

He was surprised to find a pot of steaming chicken noodle soup already sitting on the stove. Papyrus was disappointed he couldn’t help out more. He poured a bowl and carefully made his way back upstairs to set it beside the other Papyrus. He changed the cloth on the Papyrus’s forehead, noticing how warm it was. 

When other him was sleeping, the two of them really looked similar, almost like twins. The room even looked similar, with the racecar bed, computer and pirate flag. The action figures were different, being characters from “My Little Boney”. How did they turn out to be so different in personality when this Sans seemingly treats his counterpart the same as how his own brother treats him?

The sound of a faint pop and appearance of Sans interrupted his thoughts. The small skeleton held a bottle of green liquid in his hand. Papyrus propped up his other self while Sans poured the medicine into other Papyrus’s mouth. 

Sans sighed and slumped heavily against the walls. Heavy, dark circles lined the bottom of his sockets; it appeared even worse than the last time Papyrus had seen him. 

“YOU SHOULD REST. I’LL WATCH OVER PAPYRUS!” He found it difficult to call other him Sans’s brother after seeing their last few interactions. 

Sans looked as if he was going to decline but nodded his head and was asleep in a matter of seconds. He must’ve been up the entire night given how fast he’d fallen asleep. 

Papyrus carefully scooped up the small skeleton and carried him into his room, which Papyrus realized he hadn’t been in yet. It was pretty much exactly the same as his Sans’s, even with the trash tornado. He tsked as he unfurled the ball of sheets in the corner of Sans’s bare mattress and draped them over the mattress. He then gingerly placed Sans down and pulled out a blanket from his counterpart’s room. With a heavy sigh, he took one final glance at Sans before walking back to “his” room. His other self was still asleep.

Since his Sans fell ill once before, Papyrus proudly believed he was quite good and attentive at taking care of the sick. He switched the cloth whenever it got too warm, gave the other Papyrus his second dose of the medicine and even attempted to feed him some soup. That didn’t go so well, and he had to wipe off some of the liquid from the bed. 

Several hours later, Papyrus heard a loud thud and sudden movement in Sans’s room. He quickly rushed in, worried that Sans had somehow hurt himself. The two promptly crashed into each other in the doorway.

“OWIE!” he exclaimed. He heard a grunt of pain followed by the clatter of bone hitting the wooden floor. “ARE YOU ALRIGHT?”

Sans peered up at him, rubbing his tailbone. “yeah, good thing we’ve got such thick skulls, heh.”

“NYEH HEH, THAT WAS HORRIBLE SANS.” Papyrus offered his hand and helped the smaller monster stand.

As if he’d suddenly remembered why he was up, Sans rushed into the other room and sighed with relief as his eyes fell upon the other Papyrus. 

“DO YOU KNOW WHEN HE SHOULD BE AWAKE?” 

Sans shrugged, concern etched on his features, “hopefully soon.”

Sure enough, his other self did wake up later that day. It was only for a few minutes, and he had spent much of that time ranting bitterly at how awful he felt and how it was all Sans’s fault for not being able to take care of him properly. Papyrus had heard the rant as he was coming upstairs with two fresh batches of spaghetti he’d made for him and Sans. His soul pulsed with anger, and he stormed into the room ready to chew him out, only to find his counterpart unconscious again. Sans sat on the floor next to the bed with a despondent expression.

“DON’T LISTEN TO HIM! HOW COULD IT BE YOUR FAULT WHEN ALL YOU’VE BEEN DOING IS TAKING CARE OF HIM?!” Papyrus couldn’t help but yell. His other self did not stir despite his loud volume.

Sans gave him a grateful smile but remained silent. Papyrus sat down next to him, placed the two plates of spaghetti on the floor and leaned over so their shoulders were touching.

“I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’VE DONE IN THE PAST TO BELIEVE THAT YOU DESERVE THIS TREATMENT,” the tall skeleton grasped both of Sans’s hands, his hands dwarfing the other skeleton’s. “BUT YOU ARE IN MANY WAYS LIKE MY SANS THAT, AS A PAPYRUS AND YOUR OTHER BROTHER, WHATEVER YOU HAD DONE WOULD NEVER MEASURE TO HOW OTHER ME TREATS YOU!” 

“T-thanks pap,” Sans said softly. 

The two of them spent the rest of the evening sitting together. Sans appeared contemplative, as if something was plaguing his mind. Papyrus didn’t pry though, recognizing it was a bad time. They didn’t speak much for the rest of the evening but Papyrus felt a sense of peace and comfort.

Finally, after two days of care by them two, the Royal Guard member woke up fully restored and, much to Papyrus’s displeasure, began acting like his normal, rude self. He screamed at Sans, who remained quiet but had a strange look on his face. It almost resembled annoyance. Seeing that his brother wasn’t reacting how he’d wanted him to, the fedora-wearing skeleton turned his rage onto Papyrus.

“How dare you show yourself after I specifically kicked you out! I should call the Royal Guards on you for trespassing! ” the fedora-wearing skeleton roared.

“I HELPED YOU GET BETTER AND THIS IS HOW YOU THANK SOMEONE?!” Papyrus argued. The nerve of other him! No appreciation at all!

“waitaminute, y-you. _you kicked pap out_?” Sans asked incredulously but there was a dark undercurrent to his tone. He looked at his brother directly, the first time Papyrus had seen it. “h-he didn’t leave on his own?”

“Of course not! He was becoming a nuisance so I told him to leave! And now because of _you_ , this pathetic sack of bones—”

“ **S h u t u p !** ” A chill shot down Papyrus’s spine at the deep, threatening quality in Sans’s voice, as well as the hollowed glare directed at his other self, who gaped in utter shock. “ **You will not say another bad word about Pap! Not only did you lie to me and kick him out, you show no appreciation for all that he did to take care of you!** ”

The shocked expression on other Papyrus’s face quickly morphed into a sneer, “Oh? And what are you going to do about it? Kick _me_ out of the house?”

There was a beat a silence before Sans answered, to both Papyruses surprise, “Yes, if continue to act this way towards Papyrus, you should leave. I paid for this house!”

The native Papyrus stood his ground and glared venomously at Sans. “I will not leave and you can’t do anything to stop me!”

“Fine, if you won’t leave, then I will.” Sans stepped towards Pap.

“What?! Are you going back on your words and going to abandon me like you did all those years ago?” 

Sans’s eye lights suddenly blinked back into existence, and he flinched back as if other Papyrus had actually struck him. 

“Really, _brother_ ,” the tone was mocking, scathing, “you think you deserve forgiveness? Don’t make me laugh! You can act tough now but you’ll eventually come running back to me like the mutt that you are!”

Unbridled rage consumed Papyrus and before he could register what he was doing, he walked up to his double and smashed a gloved fist into his face.

“I’VE GOT A LOT TO SAY TO YOU, OTHER ME! I AM BOTH DISAPPOINTED AND DISGUSTED THAT I SHARE LIKELINESS WITH YOU!” Papyrus shook furiously. “WHEN I FIRST MET YOU, ALTHOUGH I DID NOT APPROVE OF YOUR BEHAVIOR, I BELIEVED THAT YOU COULD CHANGE, THAT YOU COULD BECOME A BETTER MONSTER. BUT NOW I SEE THAT I WAS WRONG.”

Papyrus took several deep breaths and made his way back to where Sans was standing, “SANS MAY HAVE WRONGED YOU IN THE PAST, BUT THAT DOES NOT EXCUSE YOUR BEHAVIOR TOWARDS HIM NOW! AND FROM WHAT I’VE SEEN, HE HAS MORE THAN MADE UP FOR WHATEVER ABANDONMENT HE’D DONE IN THE PAST!” 

He picked Sans up into his arms, “HE WORKS SEVERAL JOBS TO PAY FOR THE HOUSE AND IS ALWAYS PUTTING YOUR FEELINGS AND NEEDS BEFORE HIS! YOU DO NOT DESERVE A BROTHER LIKE SANS! AND IF YOU’RE NOT GOING TO TREAT HIM PROPERLY, THEN HE SHOULD BE FREE TO LEAVE YOU!”

The room was dead silent except for the quiet sniffling coming from the skeleton in Papyrus’s arms. He had no idea when Sans had begun crying but there were large, blue tears streaming down his face like rivers.

“pap, d-did you really m-mean all that?”

“OF COURSE, THE GREAT PAP IS NOT ONE TO LIE!” Papyrus reassured. 

He then glared at his double, who stared at them in a mixture of shock, rage and resentment.

“Fine, if you want to leave me so much, then leave! See if I care! I don’t need you anymore! Now get out!”

Papyrus was more than happy to oblige, carrying Sans tightly in arms. Their journey back to Waterfall was quiet, both basking in the aftermath of that explosive confrontation. Papyrus had just stepped out of town when he felt Sans lean his head against his chest and tighten his grasp around Papyrus’s ribs.

“what you said back there… to c-chief. y-you don’t know how much that means t’me. thanks, bro, you’re the coolest.”

Papyrus beamed, his soul nearly jumping out in happiness and love, “OF COURSE, BROTHER.”


	8. Journey Home...?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a meeting with Alphys and Undyne, Sans finds the location for Papyrus to go back to his timeline. When Papyrus goes through, he ends up meeting a mysterious figure.

Papyrus and Sans decided to head to Undyne’s. When Papyrus had asked if Sans had anywhere to go, the smaller monster only listed Grillby’s and the restaurant in the MTT Resort. Of course the best (and only, really) option would be to go to the captain’s place. Sans wanted to walk the rest of the way to her house once they’d gotten to Waterfall but Papyrus had insisted on carrying him. He’d done it numerous times for his Sans when he would picked him up from a late night out at Grillby’s. And it wasn’t as if either Sans were heavy.

It turned out Undyne wasn’t home, and even though the Royal Guard trainee knew she wouldn’t mind if he and Sans stayed at her place during her absence, he still felt hesitant about doing it. Sans suggested they head over the Alphys’s lab to have her check on the signal device.

The two of them made their way to Hotland, and Papyrus noted some changes in the steam vent puzzles. There were a lot more catwalks, strange gizmos, lava pits, and even lava pipes. He still disliked those steam puzzles. His own created puzzles in Snowdin were much better! He voiced his opinions to Sans, who listened attentively and agreed, smiling proudly at him. They eventually reached the lab. Papyrus finally let Sans down after he’d convinced Papyrus that they shouldn’t give Alphys any “shipping” ideas, whatever that meant.

“H-hi guys, how are you doing?” Alphys greeted 

“sup, alphys,” Sans gave a wave of his left hand.

“HELLO! HOW HAVE YOU BEEN DOING ALPHYS?”

“Oh! I’m, uh, doing well. T-thanks for asking. Is there, uh, something you guys need?”

“the device picked up some strong signals in waterfall. was wonderin’ if ya had the time to check it out?”

That sent Alphys into a frenzy, who eagerly led them inside the lab. He ran a few tests on the device using the computer console. All Papyrus could make out were squiggly lines with one particular one that stood out to him. It dwarfed the size and intensity of the others. The lizard scientist issued an animated rush of words that Papyrus didn’t understand from his speaking so fast. 

“WHAT IS IT? I ASSUME THIS IS GOOD?” Were they close to finding a way home for him?

“yep, see that thick wavelength? it’s coming from waterfall.” 

“WOWIE! SO DOES THAT MEANS I CAN GO BACK SOON?”

“Yep, o-once you two find the exact location of where that signal’s coming from,” Alphys explained. 

Although this was indeed great news and he itched to get back home, a tinge of doubt flooded him. He glanced at Sans, who smiled back at him reassuringly, though Papyrus thought he’d caught a glimpse of melancholy in the small skeleton’s eye lights. A rush of sadness fell upon him. Even if he found a way back, he didn’t want to leave this Sans behind; he would dearly miss him.

“CAN ONLY I GO BACK?”

Alphys looked confused by the question while Sans’s sockets widened. 

“Um… I'm not sure... this has never happened so this is a first for all of us. B-but based off o-our research… I don’t know if bringing something foreign into your home timeline would mess things up. T-then again, y-you came into o-ours and nothing’s happened… so maybe…?”

Papyrus’s heart dropped to his stomach at the answer, and thanked Alphys. Silence filled the room. Could he bring Sans with him? He would obviously have to ask if Sans wanted to come with him. He decided to ask later in a more private setting.

A cell phone suddenly went off. All three of them scrambled around to look for the culprit until Papyrus realized it was his phone. It was Undyne, and he answered it on speaker.

“Yo Pap! Where are you?!”

“HELLO UNDYNE! I’M CURRENTLY AT ALPHYS’S LAB WITH SANS!” he heard a low-pitched squeal and glanced over to Alphys. The scientist’s tail was swishing back and forth, and he was wringing his hands in front of him, as if resisting the urge to grab the phone from Papyrus. “YOU SHOULD COME OVER AND HANG OUT WITH US!”

“Oh cool, you ok with that Alph?” 

The lizard nodded his head furiously. 

“HE’S OK WITH IT!”

“Good. And be sure that Sans is still there when I get there!”

“I WILL!” 

Said skeleton gave Papyrus a questioning and apprehensive look, as if expecting to be in trouble. He reassured Sans that Undyne only wanted to make sure he was okay, which only seemed to worry the short skeleton more. Alphys skittered around his lab, tidying up the area as much as he could. Papyrus volunteered to help as well while Sans lounged around in one of the chairs. It wasn’t long before Undyne’s loud pounding came from the door, and Alphys went to answer it.

“‘Sup, nerds! You guys starting the party without me?!” the fish captain hollered in gest.

“SORRY WE DIDN’T TELL YOU SOONER, UNDYNE! SANS AND I FIRST WENT TO YOUR PLACE BUT YOU WEREN’T HOME SO WE DECIDED TO COME HERE,” Papyrus explained. 

“A-and we’re close to finding a way home for Pap!” Alphys intoned excitedly.

“Nah, it’s fine and that’s so cool! Nice job Alph!” At the sight of scientist, Undyne strolled up to him and gave him a strong pat on the back that nearly knocked the short lizard over, who had a scarlet blush across his face. “Though I’ll miss you once you’re gone, Pap!”

“AS WILL I, UNDYNE!” 

Undyne then directed her attention at Sans, who gave her a strained smile, “What’s up with you, punk? Finally left your shitty bro?” 

Sans bristled and glared at Undyne but didn’t retort back a response. Papyrus had a feeling he would have if it weren’t for the presence of him and Alphys. Undyne also probably expected more from the small skeleton and frowned in displeasure.

“You got anything to tell me?” she pried further.

“nope, everything’s been _bone_ derful,” Sans responded flippantly with a wink of his left socket.

Papyrus could sense the tension building within the room as Undyne narrowed her single eye. Although he knew she meant well, Papyrus felt perhaps this wasn’t the best time to broach the topic of other Papyrus. Thankfully, Alphys seemed to have sensed the strained atmosphere and loudly suggested, “Undyne, I now have the complete series of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie! We should all watch it together!”

Undyne finally broke her staring match with Sans and conceded with Alphys’s suggestion. Papyrus released a sigh he hadn’t realized he was holding and placed a supportive hand on Sans’s shoulder. Sans returned the gesture with a nod of appreciation. 

Each of them grabbed a seat while Alphys popped in the series. As Papyrus watched Undyne and Alphys spout out lines from the anime with Sans chuckling along, he realized gloomily that he was going to miss this; he was going to miss not only Sans but also Alphys, Undyne, the ice cave, and all the minor differences that he’s come to accept. 

Eventually, after ordering and eating an entire pie of pizza, as well as finishing the entire series of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie, they called it a night. Alphys suggested they all sleep over since it was too late to head back to Waterfall and there was more than enough room for the three of them to stay. Alphys even had spare mattresses and sleeping bags for them. He and Undyne took the second floor while Papyrus and Sans occupied the first. 

Papyrus laid there for several minutes before he began tossing and turning. He felt too energized to sleep with everything that’s happened in the past few hours. He shifted and noted that Sans too seemed to be still awake, gazing absently at the ceiling. The tall skeleton thought back to all the time they’ve spent together. He soon made his decision.

“HEY SANS,” Papyrus began. He made sure his volume wasn’t loud enough to wake Alphys and Undyne. “IF THIS ALL WORKS OUT, AND I FIND A WAY BACK HOME TO MY TIMELINE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME WITH ME?”

Papyrus heard Sans’s breathing falter and felt a shift in the mattress. There was a long bout of silence before he answered softly, “i… i can’t.”

Papyrus felt himself deflate from the response. When he turned to peer at the small skeleton, he found Sans turned away, facing the wall. Papyrus fought the urge to reach out and touch him.

“WHY NOT? I CAN INTRODUCE YOU TO MY BROTHER AND THE UNDYNE—”

“you heard what alphys said earlier... you shouldn’t risk messing up your timeline by bringin’ me along.”

“BUT I’M FOREIGN TO THIS PLACE AND NOTHING BAD HAS HAPPENED!”

“we don’t know the circumstances of your coming here.” Sans shifted slightly but didn’t turn around. He exhaled a heaving sigh. “be-beside… i-it wouldn’t be right for me to go… t-this is my home. and… and i’m happy here.” 

Papyrus was not stupid to believe that final claim. It was clear to him that Sans was definitely _not_ happy here, but try as he might to convince the stubborn monster to come with him, Sans remained silent. Feeling disheartened and with a soul as heavy as lead, the Royal Guard trainee turned away and fell into a fitful sleep of a golden hallway and the blurry silhouettes of two short monsters fighting fiercely against each other. He could do nothing but watch as one figure landed a fatal hit on the other.

Papyrus woke up the next morning in a cold sweat for some inexplicable reason. He tried to think back to the dream that he had but nothing came to mind except for a golden hallway. On top of that, he discovered Sans missing and nearly sent out a search party until his eyes fell upon the note left next to him. 

_pap,_

_sorry if i gave you a fright. had some things to take care of. meet ya back at waterfall._

_\- sans_

The tall skeleton’s soul clenched in fear at the thought that Sans had gone back to his brother. He nearly stormed out of the lab before Alphys pointed out that the signal device was missing. Undyne had her sentry rounds in an hour and both her and Papyrus decided to head back to Waterfall. Papyrus explained his and Sans’s confrontation with other Papyrus to Undyne, who clamored praises at the tall skeleton. She was still disappointed that Sans had refused to confess about his brother’s abusive behaviors.

On the remaining way back, Papyrus mulled over the fact that Sans had left to search for the location of the signal without consulting him first. He couldn’t help but feel hurt by the monster’s actions. Why didn’t Sans wait for him to look for it together?

Both Papyrus and Undyne were shocked to find Sans waiting in front of the captain’s fish house, slumped heavily against the door and face directed at the ground. He looked up when he heard them approached, and he brightened immediately.

“i found it, pap! i found a way for you t’get back!” Excitement filled his voice but Papyrus noticed something odd about the tone that he couldn’t place, distracted by his own state of shock.

“Whoa, really?! Isn’t that great Pap? You’ll finally be able to get home!” Undyne beamed. She gave the tall skeleton a tight hug. “Take care, punk! I’m gonna miss ya!”

Papyrus nodded numbly and returned the hug, not expecting to be going back home so soon. After saying his goodbyes to Undyne and giving a quick call to Alphys as well, he followed Sans through Waterfall. The two of them remained silent, Papyrus finding himself at a loss for words. They’d just passed the statue and the lone telescope when Sans suddenly stopped and took several steps back until he was behind the tall skeleton. Papyrus recognized this area as the same place he’d found Sans a few days ago. There was a new hallway that he didn’t remember seeing last time and a door stood in the middle of it.

“this is the place. i’ve been pickin’ up strong signals from here but never found anything til now. i think the hallway and door only shows up for a short period.”

Papyrus took several steps towards the door and was startled to see it fade away into a pitch black doorway. He turned to glance at Sans, who smiled airily at him and indicated at him to go on. He took several steps towards the doorway but was hesitant to go through it. 

On one hand, he couldn’t wait to get back; he had so much to tell his brother. But on the other hand, he didn’t want to leave this other Sans behind. This world’s Sans had become just as much as his brother as his own Sans. Despite Sans’s previous declination, Papyrus wanted to ask him to come with him again.

He spun around and was greatly disappointed and saddened to find the small skeleton absent. Papyrus resisted the urge to run back the way he came and look for Sans. But he didn’t have much time if what Sans had said about this place only being available for a brief period were true. This may be his only opportunity to get back home to his timeline. Papyrus took a deep breath and, with his soul already filled with regret, he stepped into the doorway. 

Absolute darkness greeted him. It was familiar, the same desolate air he felt when he’d first died and ended up in that black space. He walked forward a few steps and static reached his ears. In the distance he spotted a dark, formless blob with a white face. As Papyrus approached the figure, it seemed to grow taller, as if forcing itself to stand, and his face had two distinct cracks running down from his white, blank sockets.

“HELLO! CAN YOU HELP ME? I’M LOOKING FOR A WAY BACK TO MY TIMELINE.”

The figure’s formless body trembled and static filled his ears. Papyrus noticed two white hands signalling something to him. He was disturbed that the hands seem melted into their body.

“I APOLOGIZE BUT I CANNOT UNDERSTAND YOU!” 

If this monster, thing, couldn’t communicate verbally, and he couldn’t understand the hand signals, what could he do? Papyrus suddenly took out his phone and saw that it was still somehow working. He carefully placed the device into the strange monster’s “hands”.

“CAN YOU TYPE?”

The crooked grin on the monster’s face seemed to widen, and a strange mix of clacking and static filled the darkness around them. 

**[It is so wonderful to see you... my boy.]**

Papyrus frowned in confusion at the words on his phone. He racked through his memories but could not think of ever meeting or knowing someone like this in the past.

“I’M SORRY, AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW YOU? WHO ARE YOU?” 

After several minutes he received a reply.

**[I go by many names and forms... In this timeline, I am Grandpa Semi… in others, I’m simply a mystery man… where you come from… I am known as Doctor W. D. Gaster.]**


	9. A Different Perspective (Two Promises)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A look into the mind of Sans.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve been waiting since the beginning of this fic to write this chapter so hopefully… it came out ok. But boy oh boy…
> 
> **Chapter warnings: all those not-so-nice ones (abuse, emotional manipulation, etc.) are in full force in this chapter, along with the three lovely new ones: unhealthy relationships, dubcon, and suicidal ideation.**

Sans disliked making promises. He has only ever made three in his entire life thus far. One was to the lady behind the door, his one friend who kept him company while he practiced knock knock jokes and puns for his comedy sketches. The other two that he’s made were directed to, essentially, the same monster—chief, his brother, and Pap, the Papyrus that had suddenly appeared one day in his timeline.

He made the first of these two promises years ago, soon after he’d left his lab assistant job. His brother was overall a good kid as a babybones but had always been a bit spoiled, being the younger brother and being only raised, at the time, by himself and their grandfather at New Home. Their grandfather wasn’t a bad parent per se but he was occasionally negligent of their care. It was never on purpose and his position as the Royal Scientist did not allow for spending much time home with them.

Sans had gotten older, finished schooling and was brilliant enough to obtain a job as his grandfather’s assistant. So for three years, Sans worked at the labs, often spending days at a time there. This oftentimes left Papyrus, who was a teenager by then, home by himself. Sans would never forgive himself for those three years, would always regret those three years he’d become so engrossed in his grandfather’s research into timelines and the Void that he largely neglected Papyrus. 

A tragic accident led to the utter destruction of his grandfather, so much so that nearly all monsters’ memory of him had been erased, except for his. That was when Sans realized the huge mistake he’d made, quit his job and promised himself that he would always take care of his brother no matter what. It was the only way he could make up for all the times he wasn’t there for his brother. 

But by then, it was already too late. His brother had changed so much in those three years, had become bitter and angry. With the memory of his grandfather gone, he blamed Sans for his lack of friends, his isolation from others, and his general unhappiness. Sans never tried to refute it. After all, it _was_ his fault that he’d abandoned Papyrus for those few years, for not being there to support his brother and for not doing more to prevent his grandfather’s death. 

Sans did whatever he could to make up for his mistake because he still loved his brother dearly despite his constant disparaging at Sans. He’d picked up several jobs to pay for a house in Snowdin, moving out of their small apartment in New Home. He figured that a change of scenery would help Papyrus. His brother’s disposition remained largely the same, and he even acted rudely when Sans had tried to introduce him to some of their neighbors and the Snowdin residents. It was the one time Sans had scolded his brother.

“ya can’t be rude and expect t’make friends, bro,” he had said.

Papyrus’s entire face contorted in anger and snarled back, “Don’t tell me what to do, Sans! And stop calling me bro!”

“what, i’m just tryna help ya make friends.”

Papyrus stomped and glowered at him in rage, “I don’t want your useless help! This is all your fault to begin with! You’re the worst brother ever!”

Those words were a fatal blow to his soul, and he watched Papyrus storm off. He had initially been angry, indignant even, but it disappeared as quickly as it came. He truly was the worst. And as he heard his brother repeat those words again and again, he slowly began to agree and accept them. He also accepted and believed when Papyrus called him “lazy” or “worthless”. He just couldn’t seem to do anything right to redeem himself in his brother’s eyes. He often wondered, and sometimes even wished, if he should’ve just died in the accident along with his grandfather.

But he kept going, kept supporting Papyrus in all his endeavours. He even threw a small party (so small that he was the only attendant) when Papyrus had finally become a Royal Guard. He’d promised himself that he would never abandon his brother again and that he would always be there for Papyrus. And he would never break that promise because, although he disliked making promises, he hated breaking them even more.

About a year after Papyrus had become a Royal Guardsman, Sans came home from work one day to find his brother sitting on the couch with a strange glint in his eye lights. He looked upset, somber even, but when his eye lights fell upon Sans, he gave a wide grin. 

“Sans, come here,” his brother had ordered.

The older sibling hesitated, thinking he’d done something wrong, as Papyrus hadn’t called him by his name for the past year. He slowly stalked over.

Sans could feel sweat bead on the back of his head and stuttered, “wh-what’s up? s-something ya need, c-chief?” Ever since Papyrus had became a Royal Guard, he demanded that Sans address him as ‘chief’. 

Papyrus smiled widely, almost kindly, as he took ahold of one of Sans’s hands and slowly stroked up his arm. Sans shivered from his brother’s suggestive touches. 

“At my convention meeting today, several of my boney friends were touching each other and doing things that felt so _pleasureable_.” His brother’s face suddenly fell into a desolate expression. “But none of them were comfortable with me since I was a skeleton.”

Sans didn’t like where this was heading, not one bit, and almost pulled his hand away from Papyrus’s lingering caresses. His younger brother gazed at him imploringly, sadness etched on his features, “Please, brother, can we do those sort of activities? It’ll make me feel so much better, make us both feel so much better.”

Alarm signals in Sans’s brain screamed at him to decline, that there was nothing right about what his brother was asking. Sure, they were both adults by now but _this was his brother_. No matter how Papyrus or his own mind tried to spin it, everything about this was wrong.

“uh, i dunno if this is a good idea, chief.” His soul clenched painfully at the devastated expression on Papyrus’s face. “it’s just that… we’re brothers. those kinda things are… not proper to do with family.”

“But this is just for fun. It doesn’t mean anything,” his brother replied back, voice dripping with sadness.

Sans was surprised to hear sniffling coming from him. His brother had lowered his head enough to obscure his face. 

“It’s fine.” Papyrus shifted on the couch. “I’ll just hang out in my room… by myself… with no one else to ever experience this with.”

Indecision wracked Sans. On one hand, he shouldn’t accept what his brother was asking, but seeing the loneliness that Papyrus endured daily sent shockwaves of guilt through him. Ignoring the vast majority of his mind screaming against this decision, he pulled Papyrus back onto the couch and trailed his phalanges lightly up his brother’s chest.

“i-i’ll do it. just this once so… you have an idea how this feels until… until ya find someone else t’do it with.”

That had been the first time Sans had done something so intimately, so _wrong_ , with his brother. But it was far from the last. 

Despite his words and initial disapproval, he found himself unable to refuse his brother’s future advances. Mainly because they were the only instances where he finally did something right for his brother; the only instances where he drew out praises instead of criticism from Papyrus. And it did feel nice when Papyrus returned the favor. Though afterwards, his self-disgust and guilt always came roaring back at full force, stronger than ever. How could he be so pathetic and disgusting to use his brother like that? He’d simply come to accept that this was what he deserved.

Everything changed when the new Papyrus showed up. Pap was so different from chief that Sans had initially refused to believe they were related monsters. How could someone, who was a counterpart to chief, be so understanding and kind? At first, he’d been envious of the Sans back in Pap’s timeline, envious of the fact that his worldly counterpart had such a cool, amazing brother. But as Pap spoke more about the other Sans, guilt took its place. If only he’d been a better brother to his Papyrus, if only he hadn’t abandoned him all those years ago, then maybe Papyrus would’ve been a better monster. Sans only had himself to blame for how his brother turned out 

Pap was a shining beacon in the dark, lighting up his world in ways he could never even imagine. The more he interacted with Pap, the more he became drawn to the foreign skeleton. He could spout all the terrible skeleton puns and jokes (except those directed at himself) that he wanted and had fun at the cooking session with him and Undyne. But those were nothing compared to the comfort and support Pap provided him. Before long, and against his better judgment, he grew to love Pap wholeheartedly. Being with Pap made him feel happiness for the first time in years, which was why—

“i’ll help you find a way back, i promise. i’ll ask alphys if he has any ideas, and we can work together to find a way for you to get back to your timeline.”

Pap’s embrace and gratitude had shocked and confused him but he soon sank into the tall skeleton’s warm arms and muttered softly, “of course, pap, i would do anything to make you happy.”

What other purpose was there for him? He’d quit his science job, never wanting to have anything to do with it anymore. But for this one instance he would deal with it to help Pap get back home. It was his way of paying back Pap for everything he’s done. Truthfully, whether it was for chief or for this Papyrus, he would always give it his all to support them since he would be nothing without them.

Their interactions continued, with Pap comforting him after his comedy show and brightening the dark spots in his life. He was absolutely devastated when Pap had left without saying a word that morning after his show. He’d immediately blamed himself for doing something wrong, for unknowingly scaring Pap away. 

“chief, d’ya know where pap went?”

“Him? He left. He told me he was tired of living with us and hated having to deal with you all the time. He was just a freeloader anyway,” his brother had said.

Sans’s soul sank into his nonexistent stomach at those words and, as if he’d taken a bone attack directly to his chest, pain lanced through him. He’d initially denied chief’s claims, believing that there was no way Pap would ever hate any monster, especially after interacting so much with him. But as the days passed, and Sans heard no words from the foreign skeleton, doubt creeped into him. Once again, his brother’s words had consumed him.

Even if Pap hated him, he still had a promise to keep. During his breaks and the middle of the night, when chief was asleep, he’d snuck throughout areas of the Underground that were known to be strange and anomalous. With Alphys’s sensor device, he’d located a weakness in the timeline that would help Pap get back home. He just hadn’t expected to meet the tall skeleton there at that exact same location.

Conflicting emotions flooded him, sadness, pain and hope. Maybe chief had been wrong, and Pap didn’t actually hate him. He’d been so relieved, so happy, when his suspicions were confirmed. 

Of course, nothing good ever lasted for him. With chief getting sick, Sans scrambled everywhere to help him get better. He barely remembered a time when his brother had fallen ill so the whole situation frightened him. What would he do if his brother never got better or even dusted? That question spurred him on, kept him going despite the overwhelming exhaustion flooding his entire being. After he reached the end of his metaphorical rope, he finally gave in and enlisted help from Pap.

With the extra help and some downtime for him to finally think, Sans evaluated his whole situation objectively for the first time since he’d made his promise to always take care of his brother. Pap’s words and questions had resonated within him, and maybe he’d been blaming himself too much… maybe he didn’t deserve to be miserable for the rest of his life? Chief was an adult after all, had a job and should be able to take care of himself. Of course, those thoughts were immediately silenced when—

“Really, _brother_.” The mocking tone in Papyrus’s voice made him flinch. “you think you deserve forgiveness? Don’t make me laugh! You can act tough now but you’ll eventually come running back to me like the mutt that you are!”

And those words had _hurt_ ; it was as if his soul had been torn in half and stomped on until it was nothing more than a wretched piece of garbage. Even though Pap’s following argument had helped tremendously, the sting left by his brother’s words remained. He’d tried to ignore it when he hung out with Pap, Undyne and Alphys, but it gnawed away in the back of his mind like a parasite.

So when Pap had asked if Sans wanted to go with him back to his world, the answer was obvious. There was never really an option for him; of course he couldn’t go. Escaping to that other timeline would mean abandoning his brother like he had all those years ago. He didn’t want to repeat that same mistake again. And what would his counterpart think of him? If he was truly a Sans, then that world’s Sans would never approve of his leaving his brother to go with Pap. 

At the same time, his soul tightened painfully at the thought of never seeing Pap again. If Pap was going to go back home, then he couldn’t let himself become more dependent on the foreign skeleton. He’d searched for that definitive weak spot in the timeline on his own in an attempt to distance himself from the tall skeleton. And being the pathetic coward that he was, he took a shortcut as soon as Pap had turned away from him. 

Sans appeared in Snowdin, in front of his—no, his brother’s house. With a soul filled with lead, he slowly trudged towards the house and noticed with distress that his mailbox was missing. He frantically peered around the area, trying not to assume the worst. It had been completely pulled out of the ground, if the hole taking its former place was anything to go by. 

Had his brother really thought to remove it so quickly? 

The small skeleton hesitantly walked up to the door, took in a deep breath and raised a trembling hand towards it. He could hear the television playing. Chief must be home. All he had to do was apologize and work harder to fix everything. He’d kept his promise to Pap; now he only had to keep the one he’d made for his brother.

He gave three soft knocks and waited for a response, his other hand nervously tugging at a loose thread inside his jacket pocket. Seconds passed but the door remained closed. He gave another three knocks and waited. The sound from the television shut off. Sans perked up slightly in hopes for a response. Instead, he heard footsteps climbing up the stairs followed by a loud slamming of a door. 

Was this it then? Papyrus truly didn’t need him anymore? The thought filled him with despair, and with nowhere else to go, Sans pulled at his magic to shortcut to the one place that brought him happiness.

The chilly air of the ice caves brushed softly against his bones, and the golden lights above him darted back and forth like an elaborate dance. He slumped heavily against the icy walls and gazed blankly at the “stars”. His mind flashed back to several days ago. That time he’d spent here with Pap, watching this very scene, was the happiest he’d ever been. When Pap had offered to become his brother, he felt like the luckiest monster in the Underground. How could one monster be so undeniably cool?

Now, all he felt was numbness. A calming sort of numbness where everything, all his pain, sorrow, and that minimum amount of happiness, seemed to fade away. 

_“NEXT TIME YOU FEEL LIKE COMING HERE, I’LL COME WITH YOU AGAIN, SANS!”_

And here he was now, once again watching the fireflies alone. But this was what he deserved, wasn’t it? He had abandoned Papyrus, and now the reverse has happened. But he’s... he’s done a good job, right? Done all he could to make up for his past mistakes. His brother didn’t need him anymore, and he’d kept his promise to Pap to get him back home. Without them needing him, what else did he have to live for?

Sans’s vision blurred and black spots lined the periphery. Exhaustion settled deep within his soul, which pulsed weakly within his chest. 

It’s about time he’s finally given a break. A nice, long nap, which hopefully, he’ll never wake up from.


	10. Brothers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus has an interesting discussion with the mysterious Gaster, and makes his decision.

Papyrus stared at the formless, black heap called W. D. Gaster. The name was new to him, but for some inexplicable reason, familiarity and nostalgia pulsed through him. 

“EARLIER, YOU CALLED ME ‘MY BOY’. AM I RELATED TO YOU IN SOME WAY?”

The strange monster bobbed his “head”, and his cracked face seemed to widen. He motioned for the phone in Papyrus’s hand, which the tall skeleton handed back.

**[Yes, back in your timeline, you and your brother were my most treasured creations... my wonderful sons.]**

“YOUR SONS? WOWIE!” Papyrus held his cheekbones in excited shock. “THEN YOU’RE OUR FATHER! HOW IS IT THAT I DON’T REMEMBER YOU AT ALL? SANS HAS NEVER MENTIONED YOU!”

**[It’s a long and tragic story that is better left untold. There are many things your brother have not told you, and I do not blame him. It must have been hard for him. Still, there are things even he does not know or understand.]**

His soul ached at the mention of Sans; not only for his own brother but also for the one that he’d left behind. Questions flooded his mind at this monster’s words. What secrets did Sans keep from him? He always had inklings that his brother kept things from him but he’d assumed Sans would eventually tell him. This, in addition to everything he wanted to tell his brother, only spurred him to continue forward.

“DO YOU KNOW HOW I CAN GET BACK HOME?”

Gaster shook his head and shrunk into himself, his form trembling.

**[There’s no way for you to get back home, I’m sorry.]**

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN I CAN’T BACK HOME? WHY?” Gaster’s words and somber appearance filled him with consternation.

**[Your timeline has ended. It no longer exists. The anomaly has destroyed it with the completion of their run.]**

Papyrus felt as if the air was suddenly knocked out of him. There was no way his home could be gone, that his beloved brother, his best friend and everyone else in the Underground were gone! All the things he had to say to Sans, all the words he’s never voiced, he will now never get to tell him. 

**[I’m so sorry, Papyrus, my boy. I should have done more to help. There was so much more I should’ve done, both in your timeline and that other one. My greatest regret is simply watching and letting everything happen.]**

“MY BROTHER, THE SANS FROM MY WORLD, IS… IS THERE NO WAY FOR ME TO SEE HIM AGAIN?”

Gaster’s entire body seemed to collapse into itself as he forlornly shook his head, his cracked face morphed into a desolate frown. Papyrus felt tears streaming down his face at the thought of never seeing his brother again. He still didn’t fully understand why his home timeline was gone. Did it have to do with the human that went throughout the Underground dusting all the monsters, including him? As if reading his mind, a continuous clicking sound disrupted Papyrus’s rumination, and a new series of texts filled the screen of his phone. 

**[Your brother did what he could, gave it his best, but the anomaly eventually defeated him.]**

Papyrus thought back to the dream he had of the golden hallway with the two silhouettes locked in a fierce battle with one another. Was that what happened? 

**[I hesitated for too long, was too late to stop the anomaly from completing the genocide path.]** A loud stream of static drifted from the goopy monster, which Papyrus assumed was Gaster’s version of a sigh. **[But I figured, even if one timeline was gone due to my inactions, perhaps I could at least rectify the mistakes I’d made in a different one.]**

There was a long pause, and Papyrus took that time to wipe the tears from his sockets. 

**[I was the one that brought you into the Void when you died, Papyrus. I was the one that brought you to the proto timeline, the timeline you just left, when I heard you call for your brother.]**

Papyrus perked up from Gaster’s words, about to ask why the monster had brought him there. But then he thought back to the Sans that he had left behind. Scenes of their many interactions flowed into his mind like a movie—when he first met him and his double, him giving Sans a piggy back ride, Sans reading Fluffy Bunny to him, and his own promise to Sans to become his brother. As if shocked by an electric current, Papyrus suddenly sprang up and stared at Gaster with understanding.

“YOU BROUGHT ME TO THAT TIMELINE TO HELP SANS!” Papyrus stated. It was not a question. How had he not realized earlier? His own timeline had been destroyed, he should’ve died since he had been _killed_ by the small human. Instead, he ended up in that proto timeline, as Gaster had called it.

The formless monster nodded and clicked away at the communication device in his hand. **[Yes, that was my plan. There were many things that I regret not doing when I still existed in that timeline… if only I had been a better parent then maybe Sans and Papyrus’s relationship wouldn’t have become what it is now.]**

A surge of determination and purpose suddenly filled Papyrus at Gaster’s words. While his mind and soul were still reeling from the destruction of his brother and home, he would not be the Great Papyrus if he stayed here and moped. He had been sent to the proto timeline for a purpose, and he had to get back to fulfill it. He still had another option, another home and person to return to. Papyrus stood up at his full height and wrapped his arms as tightly as he could around his amorphous parent.

“THANK YOU FOR INFORMING ME ALL THIS, DAD!” Papyrus felt the monster return his embrace as best as he could, given his state. Papyrus drew back and stared resolutely at his father. “I AM SADDENED BY THE LOSS OF MY HOME TIMELINE, BUT I CANNOT STAY HERE! I WOULD LIKE TO GO BACK TO THE PROTO TIMELINE! I HAVE A PROMISE TO KEEP TO MY OTHER BROTHER!”

Gaster gave him a wide, face-splitting grin, and a tarry, black substance dripped from his eye sockets. It took a few seconds for Papyrus to realize that they were tears.

 **[Of course. I am so proud of you, my son. At least in the proto timeline, there is only one possible outcome, only one possible ending.]**

Gaster gave Papyrus another hug, though the sensation was similar to getting covered in piles of mud. The Royal Guard trainee returned the gesture nevertheless. His father’s dark tears still poured from his sockets. They held each other for several minutes before Gaster finally let go, and the doorway out of this dark space reappeared. 

**[Please tell Sans that I am sorry. Tell him that his foolish grandfather deeply regrets all that I’d put him through, that he needs to stop blaming himself for everything that’d happened. And that I also apologize for everything that other Papyrus had to go through.]**

Papyrus nodded and gave his father a reassuring smile. He didn’t really understand how this monster could be his dad in one timeline and a grandfather in another but he decided to simply roll with it. This whole situation was entirely too sciency for him and was more confusing than any puzzle he’s ever encountered. He was just glad to have met his father. He hoped they would meet again in the future.

“GOOD-BYE DAD! IT WAS GREAT TO MEET YOU! YOUR GREAT SON WILL VISIT YOU AGAIN SOMEDAY, AND I’LL BRING MY OTHER BROTHER HERE AS WELL! NYEH HEH HEH!!”

Papyrus retrieved his phone and gave a final wave before he sprinted out the doorway. He heard a final stream of undecipherable static before reappearing in Waterfall, right before the hallway with the telescope. Papyrus didn’t see Sans anywhere in the area and dashed back to Undyne’s, hoping to find Sans. Disappointment and worry flooded him when Sans was not there either. He quickly dialed Undyne’s number. 

“Pap?! Why are you still here? I thought you were going home?”

“I HAD A CHANGE OF PLANS!” Papyrus couldn’t revealed the fact that his timeline no longer existed. There was no doubt Undyne would freak out and not understand. His instincts screamed at him to find Sans and make sure he was safe. “DID SANS EVER GO BACK TO YOUR PLACE? I CAN’T FIND HIM HERE!”

“What?! I thought he left with you!” The foreboding sensation enveloping his soul set him on edge. “NGAAHHH!! That punk! Knowing him, he probably went back to his bro. Have you checked there?”

“I HAVE NOT! I’LL HEAD OVER THERE NOW!” Papyrus sprang off in the direction of Snowdin 

“I’ll have some of the guards scout for him in Waterfall. I’ll also give Alph a call to see if he knows anything.”

“THANK YOU UNDYNE! YOU ARE THE COOLEST FRIEND A SKELETON LIKE ME COULD ASK FOR!”

“Fuhuhu, no problem, Pap! Just make sure you bring him back so I can knock some sense into him!”

Papyrus would prefer if Undyne didn’t but he decided to address that issue later when it came up. Right now he had to get Sans back. 

How could he have thought everything would be fine with Sans? He should’ve recognize the signs. They had been so obvious now that he reflected back on the smaller skeleton’s recent actions—his declination to come with him, his disappearance in the morning to look for the weak spot in this timeline, his subdued mood that evening after analyzing the sensor device. Of course Sans would never ask Papyrus to stay even if he wanted him to and would never leave his own brother after whatever had happened in their past. How could he have been so blind to all this?

Papyrus made it to the Riverperson’s boat and got on. As if sensing his distress, the Riverperson sped through Waterfall and arrived at Snowdin in record time.

“Tra la la… Time is of the essence if you wish to avoid another tragedy… Follow your instincts if you are lost.”

The tall skeleton gave a quick thanks to the hooded figure and darted towards the direction of their house. He was startled to find Sans’s mailbox missing and pounded away at the door. He made sure to be as loud and obnoxious as he could. Papyrus would’ve simply blasted the door and entered if he wanted to be extra rude. When no response came, he kept pounding away until he finally heard loud, stomping footsteps descending the stairs. The door finally opened and his irate other self stood in front of him with bones summoned behind him.

“State your business or I’ll attack you for—”

_Ping!_

Papyrus turned the fedora-wearing skeleton’s soul blue and pinned him down in place. The hovering bones disappeared with a flash of light.

“WHERE’S SANS?!”

“Hell if I know! He isn’t welcomed here anymore!” A scowl crept onto his face. “He came here earlier but left after I didn’t answer. Serves him right for thinking of leaving me!” 

Papyrus shook with suppressed rage and had to take deep breaths to make sure he didn’t accidently crush his double’s soul. Instead he tossed the other skeleton as hard as he could into the lumpy couch.

“IF YOU CONTINUE TO ACT THIS WAY, WHEN THERE COMES A TIME YOU NEED HELP, NO ONE WILL HELP YOU, NOT EVEN SANS!” With those words said, Papyrus turned on his heels and slammed the door shut. He had no time and could not stand to deal with this rude monster.

Papyrus stormed through Snowdin in his anger, ignoring all the strange glances directed at him. When he finally processed the fact that he still hadn’t seen Sans, worry replaced that anger. Where could he have gone? MTT Resort? His sentry station? One of his jobs? Or maybe...

_“i usually come here when i’m feelin’ down since it reminds me of stars. but i’ve always wanted to come here with someone...”_

He could’ve smacked himself for not thinking of it sooner. Of course Sans would go there, to the spot where they’d watched the fireflies, where he’d promised Sans that he would be the other’s brother. Guilt crashed through him as the image of Sans sitting there alone filtered through his mind. And he’d even assured Sans that they would go to the cave together again. He had a lot of apologies to make.

Papyrus took off as quickly as he could into the direction of the ice cavern and did not stop once he reached the mouth of the cave. He ran right through and sped down the first corridor. He finally stopped once he reached a fork with one path leading to complete darkness. His soul fluttered with anxiety as he tried to discern the correct direction. He was pretty sure they’d come out from the path blanketed in darkness, though he had his eyes closed the first time they’d come here. If only he had some method to confirm it. He couldn’t make a mistake here and end up wandering around in the cave for who knows how long. Something terrible would happen, and he would not make it in time. 

What had that Riverperson said to him before they’d parted? Something about following his instincts if he was lost.

Papyrus took a few steps forward. He always had an easy time picking out his brother’s magic signature. Surely he could do the same for this Sans as well. He closed his sockets and released a strong pulse of magic. Nothing came to him for several minutes. 

But then he sensed it, Sans’s magic signature. It was dreadfully faint, so weak that it was barely detectable, and sent worry throughout his entire being. Papyrus rushed onwards until he finally came to the small alcove with golden lights glittering above him. He immediately spotted Sans’s prone figure in the far end of the area. 

“SANS! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS AND YOUR COOL BROTHER, HAVE COME BACK!” 

No response came from the small skeleton, not even a twitch. Papyrus gently placed a hand on Sans’s shoulder and was stricken with fear by how deathly cold he felt. His bones also appeared ashen and lacked its usual pearly glow. Papyrus shook and called out to Sans again, but still he received no reply.

This couldn’t be! Was this what the Riverperson had warned him about? Sans couldn’t be falling down, could he? He already lost his brother back home, he couldn’t lose the one he had here as well!

In a split moment decision, Papyrus drew out the smaller monster’s soul. He gasped at its grim appearance. It was a dull gray, like stone, and fluttered weakly, as if threatening to crumble into dust. There was a noticeable crack running down the center and several hairline ones running throughout the surface of the inverted, heart-shaped organ.

Papyrus gently cupped the soul and almost had to let go due to the crushing depression, guilt and self-hatred emanating from it. Tears pricked his eyes.

Was this how Sans felt all the time? 

But buried behind all those horrible emotions, was an overwhelming amount of love and devotion. Love directed at the other Papyrus and even more towards him. He couldn’t let it end like this, couldn’t let this Sans, his brother, remain alone feeling like this any longer. 

The Royal Guard trainee gingerly brought the feeble inverted heart until it was flush against his chest and summoned forth his own brightly shining soul. As soon as they were pressed together, Papyrus poured his own feelings into it—all his love, admiration and joy from being with Sans. He also sent his own guilt, regret and never-ending apologies for not realizing it sooner, for not doing more, for everything he had failed to tell his brother.

“I LOVE YOU, SANS, JUST AS MUCH AS I LOVE MY BROTHER BACK HOME! I’LL ALWAYS BE THERE FOR YOU, AS YOU HAVE FOR ME. SO PLEASE, COME BACK!” Papyrus kept feeding his magic into the smaller skeleton until Sans’s soul responded with a pulse in return.

“p-pap?” a soft voice called out to him. “you… you came back?”

Large, white eye lights peered up at him in confusion. Papyrus jolted and carefully returned Sans’s soul back to its rightful owner, though not before noticing traces of orange in a sea of blue. He wrapped his lanky arms tightly around Sans and let out a relieved sob. Sans tensed in his arms.

“I WAS SO AFRAID THAT I WAS GOING TO LOSE YOU TOO!” Deep, heaving sobs broke forth from Papyrus’s chest, and tears streamed down his face. “PLEASE DON’T DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT AGAIN!”

No movement came from Sans for several moments until he hesitantly returned the hug and slowly rubbed soothing circles on Papyrus’s back, “it’s ok, pap. it’s gonna be ok. sorry i scared ya.” 

“NO! I SHOULD BE THE ONE TO APOLOGIZE!” Papyrus drew back and gazed at the smaller monster. “I HAD MADE A PROMISE TO YOU! I HAD PROMISED THAT I WOULD BECOME YOUR BROTHER, AND I BROKE IT!”

“pap, it’s fine. i’d—”

“BUT IT’S NOT FINE, SANS! I LEFT YOU WITHOUT CONSIDERING YOUR THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS! YOU WOULD’VE BEEN ALONE AGAIN!!”

Sans shrank into himself and looked away, eye lights darting to the side. Guilt spread from his soul, and Papyrus knew it wasn’t his own. “it’s fine. i’m used to it.”

“YOU SHOULD NEVER HAVE TO GET USED TO FEELING ALONE!” Papyrus declared heatedly. His own bouts of loneliness before he’d become friends with Undyne had filled him with sadness and self-doubt. He couldn’t stand the fact that Sans experienced it all the time. “WHICH IS WHY I’M CHOOSING TO STAY HERE! WITH YOU!”

Sans stared back at him with wide sockets. “but what about your timeline? what about your brother?”

He contemplated on making up some excuse, to not have Sans worry about him, but he quickly squashed that idea. Sans deserved to know the truth. 

“MY TIMELINE IS GONE. THERE’S NO WAY FOR ME TO GO BACK TO IT,” Papyrus deflated slightly. 

“but that would mean your bro… the other sans, is gone too?” Sans’s sockets were black pits and his mouth was slightly parted in an expression of horrified shock.

The tall skeleton nodded “I CHOSE TO COME BACK HERE! TO ALWAYS BE THERE FOR YOU! PLEASE KNOW, SANS, THAT I AM NOT USING YOU AS A REPLACEMENT! YOU ARE YOUR OWN PERSON, AND I’LL TREAT YOU AS SUCH!”

Sans’s eye lights flickered back into existence and trailed to his face, the white pinpricks of light dilating and trembling. Tears beaded the corner of his sockets. The shorter monster lightly cupped Papyrus’s face, and his usual grin lifted into a genuine smile.

“i know you would, pap, i believe ya.” The powerful surge of trust that permeated within Papyrus’s soul made him feel like _he_ was soaring through the air. “i may not be the sans from your home, but i’ll be there for you too, in any way i can, as your older bro.” He placed a light skeleton kiss on Papyrus’s forehead. 

Papyrus pulled his brother back into his arms, and the two of them watched the fireflies dance above them. Although exhausted, Papyrus’s spirits lifted. He had a feeling that things would get better. As long as they had each other, everything would eventually work out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As much as I love Badsters, my favorite interpretation of Gaster is as an eccentric, slightly selfish/sociopathic dadster who loves his sons despite his questionable parenting. If anyone has ever read A Year Every Minute by Askullf4everyoccasion, that's my favorite Gaster. Unfortunately the more eccentric side of him isn't too prominent here. 
> 
> And this story is almost finished. The final chapter should be up by mid next week. After all, you didn't think this was the last you'll see of Proto-Pap, did you?


	11. Redeeming Qualities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Proto Paps flips and a fight ensues. He gets what's coming to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, I just want to thank Askellie for giving me the opportunity and idea to write about this (given its basic similarities to A Lack of Brotherly Love except reversed). Thank you! I hope this met your expectations. ^^;; This chapter took me so many edits to get it right but this was the best I came up with.
> 
> **Chapter warnings: implied sexual content, implied incest**

The two skeletons stayed at Undyne’s house, having nowhere else to live. Sans suggested that he look for a place in Snowdin, and although Papyrus did want to go back there, he reasoned that maybe New Home would be better. It would provide a change of scenery for the two of them. The true reason why he had suggested it over Snowdin was to keep Sans away from other Papyrus. Sans hid it well from him, but during the two times they stopped at the Store in Snowdin, Papyrus caught Sans’s gaze lingering on his house. 

He was also greatly worried over the fact that Sans had been so close to Falling Down, and most of that was due to the other Papyrus. Unrelenting anger surged through him every time he thought about it but his fear of losing Sans, losing his other brother, vastly overshadowed that rage. Sans still refused to admit to any of the abuse to Undyne or him despite the fish captain’s overt probing. Papyrus noticed that Sans seemed, not exactly happier, but much more relaxed since moving in with him and Undyne. He smiled more easily, more genuinely, and was always quick to crack some horrible pun. 

The two of them spent more time together exploring the Dump in Waterfall, visiting Aphys in Hotland and cooking passionately together (more from him than Sans). His soul still ached at the loss of his home and brother, and during some nights, he found himself crying softly to himself especially after a particular dream or memory. Sans was always quick to comfort him, usually by reading Fluffy Bunny or rubbing soothing circles on his back, which he greatly appreciated. 

About several weeks after the two of them moved in with Undyne, Papyrus finally remembered his father’s, or in this case, Sans’s grandfather’s apology to him. He just hadn’t realized the bomb he’d accidentally set off. At the first mention of “grandfather”, the smaller skeleton’s eye lights blinked out of existent and a soft rattling filled the room.

“SANS!” Papyrus exclaimed in alarm, as he lightly placed a hand on Sans’s right shoulder. Sans flinched violently, and the trembling worsened.

“i-i’m sorry, i’m sorry, i’m sorry… i’m sorry…” the smaller skeleton muttered repeatedly. Sans’s tone had Papyrus’s soul twisting painfully. 

“WHATEVER HAPPENED IS NOT YOUR FAULT!” Papyrus sent a pulse of his magic to Sans, which seemed to have calmed him down slightly. His white pinpricks of light reappeared. “I MET HIM WHEN I TRIED TO GO BACK TO MY TIMELINE.”

Sans took several deep breaths, as Papyrus stroked his back soothingly, and his shaking subsided. He glanced at Papyrus with disbelief evident on his features. “b-but how… how did you meet him. he’s… he’s...”

“I MET HIM IN THIS DARK SPACE BEHIND THE DOOR. WHAT DID HE CALL IT AGAIN, THE VOID?”

Recognition dawned on Sans’s face, and he replied, “really? what’s… what’s he like now.”

“HE WAS VERY NICE AND WAS THE ONE WHO EXPLAINED WHAT HAPPENED TO MY TIMELINE.” He frowned at the words but continued after Sans placed a hand on top of his. “HE WATCHES THE TIMELINES AND DEEPLY REGRETS EVERYTHING THAT’S HAPPENED.”

“that’s… i’m glad he still exists somehow,” Sans mumbled wistfully “i’ve tried to find a way to get him back but… heh… y’know me, always a lazybone and giving up easily.”

“IT’S OKAY, HE DOESN’T THINK ANY LESS OF YOU! HE TOLD ME TO TELL YOU TO STOP BLAMING YOURSELF FOR WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM! HE WANTED TO APOLOGIZE TO BOTH YOU AND YOUR BROTHER FOR WHAT HAS HAPPENED!” Papyrus gently grasped both of Sans’s hands in his own and gave his most reassuring smile. “SO PLEASE STOP BLAMING YOURSELF FOR EVERYTHING. NOT EVERYTHING IS YOUR FAULT!”

“thanks pap… i’ll try.” Sans returned his gesture by wrapping his arms around the taller skeleton’s middle in a tight hug. 

As the days went by, Papyrus wondered if perhaps he shouldn’t have mentioned Gaster to Sans at all (despite always trying to be the honorable skeleton that he was) as ever since he’d mentioned it, Sans seemed to have reverted to his old habits. His smiles became more forced, and Papyrus would catch him spacing out more often. When he asked what was wrong, Sans simply cracked a joke and said he was fine. 

Everything came to a halt when he came home with Undyne after a quick spar in the tall grassy area of Waterfall and found Sans absent. They searched the nearby vicinity but found no signs of the small skeleton. Undyne went into a fit, cursing at Sans for leaving without any messages. And that was what worried Papyrus the most. If Sans hadn’t even left a note, then either he didn’t have the time to write one or he was almost certainly doing something that he didn’t want the two of them to know. The only thing that could be was—

“HE’S GONE TO OTHER PAPYRUS!” the Royal Guard trainee declared. “I’LL HEAD OVER TO SNOWDIN.”

“Let me know what you find, in case someone needs a good punch in the face!” Undyne growled.

Papyrus nodded and made his way over to Snowdin. He was surprised to find the house seemingly empty. He knocked several times and waited for a good five minutes with no sound of movement coming from within the house. In fact, all the lights were off. Equal parts frustrated and worried, Papyrus asked the residents of Snowdin if they’ve seen other Papyrus or Sans anywhere. 

“That creep? I heard him hollering last night about getting Sans back.” A chill travel down Papyrus's spine as he listened to the bunny girl walking her brother. “He’s been so much more unbearable lately. Ever since his brother left. I wish he would leave too!”

“DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHERE HE’S GONE? HE’S NOT HOME RIGHT NOW.”

Bunny girl’s face grimaced in disgust and spat out, “As if I know.”

Asking around the others wasn’t much help either, though it did confirm that other Papyrus had been looking for Sans. With no other leads, the tall skeleton called Undyne to see if she had any ideas. She suggested they meet at Alphys’s lab since the scientist had cameras set up throughout the Underground. 

Sure enough, upon viewing the cameras, the three of them spotted the fedora-wearing skeleton and Sans entering the MTT Resort together. That had been several hours ago. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, though Sans’s slouch looked more pronounced than usual. Papyrus immediately took off in the direction of the resort without waiting for a word from Undyne and Alphys.

Of course, the first problem he encountered was not knowing where the two were actually staying. They never left the resort so they must be still here. He asked the cat monster in the lobby but he did nothing except complain about Mettaton and his job. Papyrus had to politely excuse himself He eventually found their room after bumping into the namesake of the resort, Mettaton. 

“Oh? So you’re looking for my ex,” the robot’s eyes narrowed. “Well, darling, he’s booked a few nights here, in room 202, with his brother. He’s probably doing something unsightly. I wouldn’t have allowed it but that would be bad business.” 

Papyrus was about to thank the owner of the resort when Mettaton lowered his head to where his ears would’ve been if he had them and whispered softly, “I need my bit of revenge too for his cheating. No hard feelings, darling, but it would be so wonderful if you two would disappear from my sight after all this is over.” There was an edge of a threat in his tone. 

“AH, I APOLOGIZE FOR INTRUDING ON YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER PAPYRUS. I WAS NOT AWARE THAT YOU TWO WERE DATING AT THE TIME. IF I HAD KNOWN, I WOULDN’T HAVE SAID YES. I’M SORRY,” Papyrus addressed. 

Mettaton’s eyes widened in shock for a split second and the frown in his shiny lips lessened slightly, “If that’s the case, then apology accepted. I would still prefer if you two stayed away for a while. Let me forget about this entire nasty situation.” The robot swept aside his bangs with a flourish, turned on his high heels and left.

Papyrus was glad Mettaton had been so understanding and quickly found his way to room 202. He was about to knock when he thought against it. Perhaps the element of surprise would be better in this situation. Low mumbles and groans filtered from behind the door. Papyrus was briefly reminded of the time he’d heard them from other Papyrus’s room. The Royal Guard trainee took a deep breath and forced the door open with his magic.

It swung inward to reveal Sans kneeling in front of the bed with his back turned towards the door. Other Papyrus sat on the edge of the bed where Sans was kneeling. At the sound of the hotel room door opening and Papyrus’s presence, the fedora-wearing skeleton stood up in anger, knocking Sans backwards. His eye lights shrunk at the sight of Papyrus. 

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE? HOW DARE YOU INTERRUPT US!” other Papyrus snarled, as he hastily shifted his wrinkled clothes. 

Papyrus was at a loss of what exactly he had interrupted. His mind churned frantically. They were being intimate together? Was this by Sans's choice? If not, he was going to give his double hell to pay. He puffed out his chest and glared at his double.

“I HAVE COME TO LOOK FOR SANS.” Papyrus glanced at the small skeleton, who was now sitting back up but staring at the ground with an expression that strongly resembled shame. He addressed to the older skeleton, “YOU LEFT WITH NO NOTICE! I WAS WORRIED, WE WERE ALL WORRIED, AND LOOKED FOR YOU USING ALPHYS’S CAMERAS.” 

Papyrus then directed his attention back to his double, “I GUESSED CORRECTLY THAT YOU HAD A ROLE TO PLAY IN THIS! WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH HIM?! ”

The Royal Guardsman’s lips curled into a sneer, “Hm, too bad for you, Pap. I didn’t force Sans to do anything. He agreed to come with me willingly when all I had to do was apologize for how I acted and remind him of the promise he’d made to me.” Other Papyrus placed firm grip on Sans’s right shoulder. “We’re simply doing a bit of brotherly bonding, isn’t that right, _brother_?”

The smaller monster was still staring at the ground but gave a faint nod, “i’m sorry, pap, for worryin’ you. i still had a promise t’ keep.”

Papyrus felt equal amounts of distress and anger over this situation. He knew Sans still blamed himself for whatever had happened in the past, and it was very likely other Papyrus’s words didn’t help matters. 

“It would be so kind if you would leave us! You’re an outsider! Sans is _my brother_!” the fedora-wearing skeleton advised with a tone that tinged with threat. 

“I WILL NOT LEAVE UNTIL YOU TRULY APOLOGIZE TO SANS FOR HOW YOU’VE TREATED HIM!” 

Bones suddenly appeared in the air and shot out towards Papyrus, who just managed to dodge it. More of them erupted from the ground where he was standing immediately afterwards. He dove towards the left side of the room to evade the attack. Heaviness settled into his soul, and before he knew it, Papyrus found himself pressed onto the carpeted floor. He struggled against the gravity magic but his double had a firm grip on his soul. His doppelganger took several steps towards him until Sans stepped in front of him. 

“stop, papyrus, there’s no need to fight.” the short skeleton stared intently at his brother. “pap is just as much my brother as you are so i won’t let ya hurt him.”

Other Papyrus’s face contorted furiously, “What?! How dare you! I didn’t allow you to do that!” he seized Sans roughly by the collar of his jacket and lifted him off the ground like a sack of potatoes. “YOU ARE MY BROTHER AND NO ONE ELSE'S! ARE YOU JUST GOING TO BREAK YOUR PROMISE TO ME?!”

“i ain’t breakin’ any promises. if you’d stop to think a little, we could all live together and be a family.” 

Other Papyrus’s eye lights narrowed to tiny pinpricks, and he shook violently, “No! I will not accept this! Those three years where I barely saw you were unbearable! I had no one, no friends, acquaintances, or even any family for support! Even if we lived together, you’ll just spent more time with _him_! I will not let you leave me again!” 

In a fit of rage, the fedora wearing skeleton flung Sans to the side, aiming for the bed. Instead, he smacked loudly against the wall. A grunt of pain escaped from him as he crumpled into a heap on the bed. White hot magic burst within Papyrus at the sight, and with a fierce roar, he summoned forth several bones from the ground. The grip on his soul lessened, and the Royal Guard trainee flung an additional column of alternating blue and white bones at his enemy. Several of them landed on his double, who staggered back a few steps back, and several more bone attacks hit him subsequently. He quickly regained his bearings and glared at Papyrus.

“You’re the reason my life is falling apart! If I get rid of you, everything will go back to how it was!”

Before either skeletons took another step, the door burst opened with a “NAARGH!” A blue spear pierced into the carpet between them, and a yellow barrier surrounded other Papyrus.

“Stop, Papyrus of the Royal Guard!! As your captain, you are under arrest for attempted murder and kidnapping!!” Undyne stood in her full armor at the entrance of the room with two other Royal Guardsmen flanking her sides. 

“What?! You, you—”

“Me nothing! As your boss, you are to remain silent until I tell you to talk, unless you want to be gagged! I will speak about your crimes to the King, and we will come to a consensus on the most appropriate punishment!” the fish captain gave a glare that could kill and then turned towards the two guardsmen. “Take him away, boys!”

Other Papyrus could barely react before the two guards each seized him by his arms and dragged him away. As soon as he was gone, Papyrus took three large strides to Sans’s crumbled form and quickly pulled the small skeleton into his arms. There was a hairline crack on the left side of his skull. Papyrus brought his gloved hand to the area and sent healing magic into the injury. Sans stirred and his eye lights reappeared, dim and hazy. He attempted to sit up but fell back with grimaced of pain.

“ARE YOU ALRIGHT?” Papyrus asked, voice filled with concern.

The white dots trailed to his face before glancing away, shame and guilt written all over Sans’s face, “‘m sorry pap. i’m so disgusting, doing those kind of things with my bro.” He curled further into himself. 

“NO YOU ARE NOT!” Papyrus responded vehemently. He tightened his hold on the monster in his arms. “YOU’RE THOUGHTFUL, KIND AND A GREAT BROTHER! YOU MEET ALL OF MY STANDARDS, SANS!” 

The two of them stayed like that for several minutes before Undyne’s voice finally interrupted, “Well now that the jerkface has finally been arrested, what are you two gonna do? Wanna head back to my place, and we’ll have a heated cooking session!”

Papyrus thought Sans was going to protest his brother’s arrest, but much to his surprise, the older skeleton simply nodded his head and gave a weak smile. For the first time in several days, Papyrus felt the tension in his soul lessen.

A week later, Sans and Papyrus agreed to moved back into the house in Snowdin. Things were finally starting to settle down, with Sans returning to his jobs. Papyrus picked up a sentry job alongside his new brother, though he still strove to become part of the Royal Guard someday. Undyne had told him that with a bit more training, she would consider his joining. The meeting with other Papyrus at the MTT Resort wasn’t without its consequences, however.

Despite Papyrus’s reassurances, Sans still had his bouts of depression and self-loathing. It especially became apparent after other Papyrus had been sentenced to work under Gerson (after getting fired from the Royal Guard) and was forbidden to come into any contact with Sans. Papyrus often found the smaller skeleton muttering apologies at night and even caught him trying to sneak out to see him. After Papyrus voiced his concerns to Undyne and Alphys, the scientist suggested that Sans see a therapist. They soon found one in Hotland, a cyan-colored fire monster that had experience dealing with abuse.

Sans had been hesitant in the beginning, often ditching his appointments or telling knock knock jokes in place of talking during the fire monster’s therapy sessions. But through the undying support from Papyrus and the therapist’s patience and understanding, Sans finally began to open up. He told Papyrus about what had led to Gaster’s disappearance from the timeline, and even revealed the regrets he had doing intimate, sexual, activities together with his brother. That one brought Sans almost as much distress as his abandoning his brother for three years. He eventually learned to not blame himself for his brother’s actions and for what had happened in the past. Papyrus always asked Sans, “ _HOW_ COULD IT BE YOUR FAULT?” and if he couldn’t come up with a good response, Papyrus would reply back, “SEE, THEN YOU DIDN’T CAUSE THE PROBLEM!” Slowly but surely, Papyrus saw improvements in Sans’s mood and behavior.

Nine months after other Papyrus’s arrest, Sans finally demanded to see the fedora-wearing skeleton. Papyrus was strongly against it after what had occurred during their last encounter. His double still had to work under Gerson for one more year before he could see Sans. He reluctantly agreed to it once Sans told him that he had some important things to say to his brother and promised that Papyrus could be there. Their meeting spot was in an alcove before Gerson’s shop. Astonishment took a hold of him as he noticed a change in his double. For one, other Papyrus wasn’t wearing his fedora, and although his arrogance and condescending attitude persisted, it was subdued. 

“What do you want?” His tone was tense and guarded, as he eyed his older sibling. 

“just had a few things to say. how’ve ya been? hopefully gerson isn’t workin’ ya too hard.” Sans’s voice was calm, casual, but Papyrus spotted the way his hands fidgeted in his jacket pocket.

“It’s been fine,” other Papyrus answered stiffly. 

There was a beat of awkward silence. A huff escaped from the younger brother’s teeth. 

“If you’re going to come here to gawk at me, I suggest you leave,” the ex-Royal Guardsman suggested pointedly.

Sans took in a deep breath and began, “i’ve done a lotta thinking these last couple of months and decided that you deserve to know the truth.”

Papyrus stood by the door, watching his double like a hawk. Sans had already given him a summary of what he was going to say. He hoped everything remained calm with no violence involved this time. That didn’t stop him from wringing his hands together in worry.

Sans briefly peered at Papyrus, who gave an encouraging smile and a nod. “the way you’ve treated me, h-how you used me… made me miserable. i wasn’t happy. i know those three years i’d left you alone were wrong, and i’ll probably never forgive myself for it, but… but that doesn’t excuse your behavior towards me.” He took another sharp intake of breath. “despite all this, i just wanna tell ya that you’re still my bro and nothing’s gonna change that.”

Sans turned around and left without saying another word. Papyrus stood there for several seconds longer, watching as his doppelganger's eyes widen in shock. 

“Guess I was the one who ended up messing everything up, like that old turtle said,” other Papyrus commented. He turned around, facing the shop. “It’s probably too late but tell him I said sorry.” 

“I WILL NOT!” Papyrus answered shortly. He placed his left hand on his hips and his right pointed at his double. “YOU SHOULD TELL HIM YOURSELF! AS I ALWAYS BELIEVE, EVEN THE WORST PERSON CAN CHANGE! MAYBE PUT SOME MORE _BACKBONE_ INTO IT! NYEH HEH HEH!!!”

Other Papyrus scoffed and went into Gerson’s shop without a response. Papyrus walked to the next area and found Sans leaning against the wall, waiting for him. The smaller skeleton’s expression brightened immediately upon seeing him. Papyrus scooped Sans into his arms and placed him on his shoulders. Sans lightly grabbed onto the top of his skull.

“thanks, pap, for comin’ with me. it was nice to finally get that off my _shoulders_ , heh.” 

“IT WAS NOTHING FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS! BESIDES, I’M PROUD OF YOU! YOU’VE COME SO FAR!” He lightly grasped each of Sans’s dangling legs and began their trek back to Snowdin.

“couldn’t’ve done it without the coolest bro in the underground.”

“NYEH HEH HEH! YOU’RE EQUALLY AS COOL, BROTHER!”

Several days later, while Papyrus was recalibrating his puzzles in Snowdin Forest, Sans introduced him to a small human carrying a stick. Their blue-and-purple striped sweater was dirty and worn, and they smiled shyly at him. He had a feeling they would become great friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to leave it ambiguous as to if Proto-Pap finally cleans up his act and apologizes to Sans or will stay foreveralone.jpg. 
> 
> Thank you all you lovely readers and commenters for following this fic! You guys are awesome! :D
> 
> My NSFW (18+) tumblr is knowmeknot101.tumblr.com.


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